Centre Of Attention
by SideshowJazz1
Summary: Shy sheltered rich girl Brooklyn Durfree is just another boarder at Rosseau Lakes College. But when she becomes a victim used for ransom by a gang of young adults, she's suddenly the centre of hate, jealousy, sympathy, lust...and maybe, just maybe, the sneaky informant can recall the shred of morality he usually ignores...Mystery/OC. Cover art by the amazing Sideshow Cellophane 26.
1. Chapter 1: Who Are They?

**A/N: Hello, readers! I know, I know, I haven't completely finished updating my other stories. But they're mostly ready to be updated in chapters, and so I'm writing this. I felt like writing the TD characters into another story, and I started taking an interest in a romantic relationship with another character. I won't spoil who it is yet, but there's a lot of fans pairing him with a character I absolutely adore, but I pair her with someone else. So, the story...**

**Plot: Brooklyn is a sheltered rich girl from a boarding school. One day, she is kidnapped by a street gang, who plan to keep her for ransom money. As she gets to know her captors, she starts developing something more with one of them...Mystery character/OC.**

**Disclaimer: First, I do not own the characters from Total Drama. I do not own Rosseau Lakes College and I don't know if there's a real outdoor mall in Toronto or whether they let students go there. I made up everything that I couldn't find online – I wanted to keep the story in Canada, and so I needed to find a private school for Brooklyn.**

I plaited my hair carefully, tying it in place, then sweeping it over my shoulder. I took a moment to check myself in the mirror. I hated the uniform because it made me look too thin and anorexic. But my deep red blouse and short denim skirt, plus my black patent wedge heels actually made me look...well, pretty, I guess.

Hi. I'm Brooklyn Durfree. Brooklyn _Celia _Durfree. I'm fifteen years old, and I board at Rosseau Lakes College in Ontario (I'm actually from Toronto, a couple of hours away, but Mom said she and her siblings all went, and it's even better now). I'm in tenth grade there, and my dorm is in Brock House. My sport is hockey (but only because I can't stand volleyball or soccer...I wish they offered something less mainstream). I'm also on the Yearbook Committee.

On long weekends, I go home. But mostly, I'm at school, emailing my family. I'm an only child, but I don't mind. It just means I get more attention, right?

I like Rosseau because it's small, and everyone's really nice and most of us are similar. My dorm has only four of us, and we're all in the same class – there's five boys and five girls in the class, three of them being day students – so I've gotten to know everyone really well. Sometimes Amber can be really mean, but Jan and Katie are really nice, and generally, the four of us get along.

What else about me...hmmm...well, I'm the tallest girl in my class. Most of the boys are taller than me, though. I have black hair, which is natural, and green eyes that I always wish were a bit...well...greener. They're a really pale green. If I wear eyeshadow, it doesn't show so much, but eyeliner really shows that my eyes are too pale.

"Stop staring at your reflection, Brooklyn! Let's go!" called Katie impatiently. "If we don't get down quick enough, they'll be out of hot chocolate!"

I laughed and joined her. "I wasn't staring at my reflection, Katie, I was staring at the background. You know, I never noticed how pretty our dorm is."

Katie giggled with me as we went down to breakfast. Just as I picked up my plate, I felt a pair of eyes on me. I turned to see a guy who looked too old to even be in twelth grade, with his eyes on me. When he saw me looking, he simply smiled and looked straight back at me. He was very tanned, and pretty good-looking, but I liked my boys more toned than muscly, like him. Not that I'd ever had a boyfriend. I'd been to an all-girls primary school, and still wasn't sure how to react to the boys in my class. Yeah, it was my fourth year at the school, but none of them really took any notice of me, anyway.

I looked away and continued getting my breakfast – half a toasted bagel and a glass of orange juice. It was as much as I could take in the morning. I usually just had a wrap for lunch and ate the most at dinnertime. I only limited myself to dessert twice a week, with one of those days being Sunday (since that was THE day for good food).

Saturday passed as usual. I had breakfast, did some weekend homework for an hour, then had lunch, etc, went to the weekend's movie. Sunday passed much the same way. The weird thing was, I caught someone else looking at me at breakfast, who I could swear I'd never seen before – a girl with short dark hair, probably wearing a tonne of makeup, judging by her pale face and outlined eyes. When she caught me looking back at her, she immediately looked away.

I told Jan about the weird stares I'd gotten, but she just laughed. "So people notice you, Brooklyn. It's about time, okay?"

"But why would neither of these people talk to me?" I wondered out loud. "Why do they just look at me for no reason?"

"I bet the guy's just shy or something." Jan answered. "I don't know about the girl. Maybe she wasn't staring at you – you said she looked away when she saw you looking. She was probably staring at someone next to you or something."

I gave a sigh. "Maybe. I don't know."

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday all passed the usual way. I didn't see the girl or the guy again, but they still lingered in my mind. I tried to forget about them, and really, by the end of the week, I wasn't worried about them any more and passed the incidents off as just some weird coincidence.

There was a day trip to Toronto planned on the next Saturday, and I signed up to go. We usually had to go to a museum, art gallery, or stage show in the morning, but after that, we were allowed to go around one of the malls in Toronto in little groups for a couple of hours, then be on the way back to school around two thirty.

This tme, we went to a twenty-dollar amateur production of _The Sound of Music, _which was...okay. Just okay – I mean, the story was pretty much the same in any version, with it being during the Anchluss and Nazi Germany invading Austria, with the Von Trapps having to escape to Switzerland at the end. I spent most of the time watching the kid actors, who were very cute, especially the two younger girls.

Then we had lunch in a clearing, which we'd packed in the morning. Then, _finally, _we were driven to the outdoor mall, and finally, it was time to do something fun.

And that's when it happened. I was actually with Katie and Jan, and we just wandered around the courtyard, ducking into a ton of shops and trying on tons of things. It was when I was trying on this really cute black top with spaghetti straps with a cherry motif on it which I'd decided to buy, that I looked out of my changing cubicle, and discovered that my friends had disappeared. I called both of them from my Smartphone, but the mall was probably too loud for them to hear, because neither of them answered. So I bought the top, and went back out in search of them.

Eventually, I went back to the edge of the mall, where our bus was waiting. A beat-up old van was parked right next to it. I tried my friends again, and then, that was when it happened.

Suddenly, I felt a pressure on both my arms, and they were suddenly pulled behind my back and held by the wrists. I instinctively screamed, but another hand reached around and muffled my cries.

"Don't make this hard on yourself, sweetheart." a gruff but nasal male voice murmured into my ear. An arm from a second person slid around my waist, while his other hand took my Smartphone, shopping bag and wallet. Finally, both people started dragging me towards the beat-up van. I continued trying to scream and kick. But both people were stronger, because they didn't even stop. Finally, they thrust me into the back of the car, between two girls, both a little older than me. With a shock, I recognized one of them as the pale girl I'd caught staring at me the other week – the surprise shocked me into stopping my attempt to scream for help. She quickly picked up a roll of wire beside her, took off a long piece, and started winding it around my wrists to keep them bound together. The other girl, a brunette with a green streak in her hair and dark eyes, pulled a black cloth out of her pocket and tied it so tightly around my eyes that I had to close them to be comfortable. I felt a seatbelt being strapped on me, and another male voice said "Got her. We can go." This one was deeper, with a very faint European accent I couldn't place.

An impatient voice, from the brunette, spoke up. "Yes, we know. Can we just go already? I've blindfolded her. I want to get this thing over with so we can just pick up our money and send her home."

"Chill, Princess, I'm going." snapped another male voice further up. With a lurch, the van roared to life and moved off.

Another voice whispered to me – a low raspy voice, belonging to the girl with the pale skin and the dark makeup. "Listen – just listen to us, and things'll go fine. I'm telling you this so you make things easier for yourself. Just do as we tell you, and you'll be home soon enough."

I didn't call out again. There was no point. But I had no idea where we were going. All I knew was that I was trapped in a van with at least five kidnappers, and in spite of what the girl had told me, I wasn't sure that I would ever get home.

**There's the first chapter. I'm sure you've guessed who everyone is. Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2: Where Is This?

**OK, let's start the second chapter. Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132, and yes, but you missed two. There's five people...**

I don't know how long I was there for. No one really talked during the drive, which made it feel that much longer. But finally, the van skidded to a stop.

"Shall we take off the blindfold now?" I heard the girl who'd spoken to me ask.

"Wait until we show her to her...uh, room." I heard the voice of the driver answer.

I heard the other girl sigh. "Fine." A hand pulled on my arm. "Come _on._" she said impatiently. I let her lead me into what I assumed was a building. It was colder inside than out.

The girl led me down a hallway, and then turned right, unlocking a door. Finally, she gave me a little push inside. After that, I heard her closing the door and locking it behind her. Finally, she untied the blindfold, and I blinked at the sudden light.

The room was small, with one high square window letting the light in. The rest of the walls were stone, as was the floor and ceiling. In the middle of the room was a sofa bed, and a light dangled from the top with a chain. In the corner was a small set of drawers.

The girl, who I now noticed had dark eyes and a few freckles, faced me. I could see she was quite a few years older than me, and extremely pretty. She wasn't any older than twenty, but there was a worldly-wise look in her eyes. "I know it might not be what you like, but tough. The drawers have a change of clothes and all, but they're mine and Gwen's things and you better not mess them up. One of us will come in each day with food and all that." She pointed to a door in the other corner. "There's a bathroom through there. Five minute time limit on showering each day – if you break that limit, one of us will cut off your water supply." Her face darkened. "But don't think we're being soft by letting you have these luxuries, since we are being a lot nicer to you than we'd usually be. If you are told to do something, do it if you want to survive this."

I finally found my voice. "W-why am I here? What's s-so special ab-b-bout me?" I couldn't help stuttering. It was pretty cold for one thing (it was only April), and the girl scared me. I'd just been taken out of my life, and hurled into a world where I was powerless.

A sadistic smirk crossed the girl's face. "Because you're innocent and rich. Don't deny it, we've been trying to find the right person from that school for weeks. We need the money to get by."

"How many of you-" I began.  
"Five." the girl cut me off. "Before you ask, I'm Courtney. We know your name is Brooklyn." Finally, she threw my shopping bag at me, still with the singlet I'd bought. "If I had my way, I'd keep that top for myself, but I guess the more you have, the less you wear my stuff." Finally, she walked out, locking the door behind her.

I was alone.

After a moment, I lay down on the couch. It was a bit lumpy, but when I pulled the bed out, it wasn't too uncomfortable. It was weird that the room was actually so comfortable. It was cold, but I had a light, a bed, a bathroom, and even a change of clothes. Even Courtney had said they were being nice to me. Every story I'd read about kidnapping had the victim being given no comfort.

I was broken out of my thoughts when I heard another sound at the door – a voice. "Knock knock."

I sat up to see another person enter. He was slightly taller than Courtney, about the same age as her, I estimated. I recognized his voice – he'd been the one driving the van. He had several ear piercings, as well as ones on his nose and eyebrow, and when he spoke, a stud on his tongue caught the light. Most of his hair was messy and black, but the top was styled into a neon green mohawk. He also had a soul patch. He was smirking as he eyed me, closing the door and locking it so I had no chance to escape while he was talking to me. His blue eyes studied me as if I was a piece of meat, or at least something he was going to ravage or devour.

"Since I'm the one who made this little plan and since I'm the boss around here, I thought I should formally introduce myself." the guy said. "Name's Duncan. Welcome to my gang's headquarters, although, as long as your family decides to comply with our demands, your visit will most likely be short."

I didn't say anything. I couldn't. Duncan surveyed me again, and then said "Seriously? Don't you have a word to say for yourself, rich girl? "

My mouth was dry, but I managed to croak out "How long are you going to-"

"We'll wait a couple days before we send the ransom note." Duncan said casually, like this was something he did every day. "Then it's up to them. If they love you enough, you'll be home within a week. But," he added, "We'll have someone keeping an eye on you to make sure you don't go running to the cops. I'm getting Gwen to work out a cover story for you right now." He paused, and then said "Gwen's the goth – you'll probably see her sometime when it's her turn. You've already met Courtney, and I'll let Alejandro and Scott introduce themselves when they feel like it." The way he was looking at me made me uncomfortable.

"Why...why are you looking at me like that?" I managed.

Duncan's smirk didn't fade. "You're cute, Brooklyn." he said simply. "Even if you are four years younger than me. Just be happy I'm not doing anything more than looking." So he was nineteen.

"Um," I mumbled, "Can I ask, how do you know my-"

"We've been watching you." Duncan cut me off. "Alejandro went in last week to find someone that looked like the right person. He can usually tell a person's weakness just by watching them for a few minutes. And Scott's good at sneaking into places and finding out information, so he found your school file and got more informaton. That's how we made sure you weren't a scholarship girl. We also know that you're fifteen, you've been single your whole life, and that you used to go to an all girl school. And we checked out where you live when you're not in school." He suddenly smiled, his face a little more genuine. "Look, kid, we're not going to keep you for that long. All we want is a few hundred grand for our survival, and that's worth your freedom. Courtney's probably told you, just do what we tell you, and you'll be back at your school the minute we have the money." Finally, he opened the door and left the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

"One of us'll be back tomorrow morning." he added as he locked it. "Don't go anywhere." I heard him laughing at his own joke.

I didn't know how anyone could laugh at this time. It was all right for them. They weren't locked up in a tiny room just for coming from a wealthy family. They knew what they were doing. I didn't even know _where_ I was.

I spent that night huddled under a thin duvet and blanket. Once it got dark, I let myself cry. Finally, it hit me that I was going to be here for a long time, at the mercy of a gang of teenagers. Yeah, I'd only really met Courtney and Duncan, but what were the others like? Gwen was obviously the other girl, but although I assumed the other two were the boys who dragged me to the van, I hadn't caught sight of them. What were they like? From what I understood, Courtney was bossy and threatening, scarily so. I hated the way Duncan had looked at me earlier, but somehow, I believed it when he said they'd let me go when they got what they wanted.

I just hoped that I'd be back at school within the next month.

**There, the second chapter, done! Next, Brooklyn will meet...who? Find out next time!**


	3. Chapter 3: What're They Like?

**Yes, can't wait to start this chapter! Thanks for your review, Ali6132 – this chapter is dedicated to you! Another thanks to PurpleBubble14!**

I fell asleep sometime at night, because next I heard was a knock on the door, and a voice calling "Brooklyn, are you awake?" My situation came back to me in a horrible flash. I was kidnapped by a gang of older teenagers.

There was a pause, and then the voice said "I'm coming in whether you're awake or not." The door was unlocked, and in stepped the girl. The one I'd seen at school – Duncan had said she was called Gwen.

"Hey." she said awkwardly. "So...sleep okay?"

I nodded shyly, not looking at her.

"Listen," Gwen said, "This ransom stuff wasn't my idea, but it's happening, like it or not. I can tell you just want to pretend like it's not, but face it, it is. Just think about trying to try being a bit more smiley." She grinned a little bit herself when I looked at her. "It works for me sometimes. Besides, if you try to be happier, maybe you'll see more than the inside of this room. We haven't done this before, but it's like juvie time off – you know, for good behaviour. Duncan was saying just recently that it might be a good idea to let you outside sometimes. And trust me – you can get really bored in a place like this." She stopped, waiting for my response.

Finally, I asked "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because a decent person would." Gwen said simply. "And there's not many decent people around here. Duncan's sort of on the fence and the others are way off." She headed for the door, but before she left, she added "Oh, and we're taking turns bringing you stuff. If you want to shower, do it within an hour, because it's Alejandro's turn and trust me, he'll be here early."

I decided to shower on Gwen's advice, and opened the drawers to see what choice I had. The second drawer held a white blouse and grey vest, olive capri pants, a purple dress, and a...costume with antennae? There was several of the same blouse and pants, actually. The drawer was quite roomy, so they all fit.

The top drawer was empty, but the third drawer had all goth clothes, black, green and blue long-sleeved tops and mostly short skirts. On one side there was a black dress made of silky material.

I tried on the olive pants, and they went down past my ankles and were very loose, but they looked okay with my new singlet.

Finally, after showering and all, my door unlocked again, and this Alejandro guy came in. I recognized him immediately. He was the guy who I saw staring at me that one day at school. Now I was close up, I could see just how amazing he was in looks. His eyes were green and deep enough to drown it. His smile was that of an angel. I was sure that if he was shirtless, I would've been able to see a six-pack on him. He was surprisingly well-groomed for a guy in a criminal gang.

"_Buenos dias, senorita._" he said in Spanish. Then, in English, with only the faintest trace of an accent, "How are you today?"

Was he honestly asking me that? How did he think I was? I wanted to say something sarcastic or cutting like that, but I couldn't. I was too nervous.

"I've brought you water for the day. " Alejandro went on, placing two 1.5L bottles of water on the ground. "Since none of us have more than two meals a day, you'll have to get used to skipping breakfast." Finally, he smiled, focusing completely on me, and said softly "You don't have to be so afraid of us. We're not going to hurt you, I promise." For that moment, I completely believed him. I couldn't help it – his voice was so calming and it sounded genuine.

There was a pause before he spoke again. "I don't like to see a pretty girl like you so unhappy. Can you try to smile for me?"

Keeping in mind that I had to do as I was told, I forced myself to smile. I don't know if it looked happy, though. Probably not. I was never really a good actress.

Alejandro patted my shoulder. "Good girl. You look much prettier when you smile. Try to keep it up." He left, giving me a million dollar smile himself before locking the door. My face fell the minute the door closed.

I couldn't help thinking that wasn't just scary...it was weird. I'd only met four of the five Courtney had said there were, but already I was confused. Courtney was someone I definitely feared. I'd only seen her once and already, I got the feeling that she could tear me apart if she felt like it. While Duncan had been a lot less cold than she had, I got the feeling that he was just as frightening if he was serious about something. Gwen looked intimidating, but I could see that she considered herself more..."decent", as she put it, than the others. I couldn't help wondering if that was true – was she really better than everyone else? And now I'd met Alejandro, he seemed okay. According to Gwen, she – and possibly Duncan – were the only decent people here. I could buy that after meeting Courtney, but I couldn't help liking Alejandro. And although I didn't like him like that, I felt myself blushing when I remembered how he'd called me "pretty". And if that was what these people were like, I couldn't help wondering...what in the world should I expect...Scott, Duncan had called him...to be like?

From what I'd already heard, he was sneaky, and if he was one of the two dragging me to the van, I knew he was strong, but that was all. At least, I figured, he probably wouldn't be as harsh as Courtney.

I was left there for hours to mull over my thoughts. I looked over the room again to see if there were any chances of escape. No, even if I stood on the dresser, I couldn't reach the window – and even if I could, there was only a tiny chance I'd fit through. The bathroom had no windows at all. I considered the idea of just trying to shove someone out of the way and make a run for it. Then again, they'd all closed and locked the door before they talked to me, only leaving it open when they were coming in or going out. I guessed Gwen was right – if I tried to be content, maybe they'd let me leave the room. And if I was allowed outside, maybe they would be distracted enough so that I could find an opening to make my escape. But then again – I shivered – what if they caught me? What would they do then?

I had hours to think it over. But finally, I heard the sound of a key in the lock again, and I turned to face the fifth person in the gang.

I was a little surprised by what I saw.

**So...what did Brooklyn think? You'll find out in the next chapter! Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4: What's He Up To?

**So, let's continue where we left off. Thanks for your review, Ali6132.**

I surveyed this guy – Scott. Unlike the other two guys in the gang, who were, to be fair, rather attractive (Duncan had nice eyes and this bad-boy charm while Alejandro was conventionally gorgeous), Scott was, to be honest, only average. It wasn't that he was bad looking or anything. He had dark blue eyes that contrasted with his vibrant red hair, and he looked pretty toned, but he was still the least attractive person in the group. I noticed freckles the colour of his hair on his shoulders, and I couldn't help relishing the fact that his shirt showed off what muscle he had – just the amount I liked. He looked a little younger than the other guys, too, but still older than me. Probably just out of school.

As I took all of this in, Scott appeared to be taking me in, too. Finally, a smirk appeared on his face, and he spoke. "Wow. You're prettier than I remembered from yesterday." I recognized the slight nasal tinge to his voice, which also had a faint Southern accent. He was definitely the one that had spoken to me when they'd first taken me away, saying not to make things hard for myself.

I didn't reply to his comment. I couldn't think of an answer.

"Not much of a talker, are you, sweetheart?" Scott said. "That's okay. Usually I like the bossy ones, but sometimes the quiet ones are just as much fun."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Scott laughed. "I thought that might get you talking. I'd just like to have a conversation with you. You know, like normal people?"

I gave a sigh. "But...don't you know about me already?" I pointed out.

"Yeah..." Scott admitted. "I mean, I know your name's Brooklyn Durfree and you're three years younger than me. And I know that you're generally a B-student and very serious and an only child. But you don't know anything about me."

I gave another sigh. "So...you only came in here to talk to me?"

"Well, I guess I was supposed to give you this." Scott held out a box with two long rolls of vegetarian sushi. "You're lucky we got some vegetarian, or Courtney would've had it all, and you'd have nothing." He chuckled, and I couldn't help laughing a little bit with him.

Scott studied me again, and then said "You know, sweetheart, you're a lot cuter when you smile or laugh." He looked surprised. "Most girls are cuter when they're mad, not happy. Weird."

I didn't understand what he was getting at. Was he trying to make me lose my temper, or trying to compliment me?

He continued to study me, and then said "Look, stop looking like you think I'm gonna attack you if you say the wrong thing. I'm not your teacher or whatever. You can say whatever to me. Doesn't mean I'll answer, but no one's gonna hurt you for it."

"Um, okay, then, so," I quavered, "Can I ask about the others? Do they talk about what they thought of me?"

Scott had a devious grin on his face. "Okay then. If I tell you what they think of you, you gotta tell me what you thought of them first." I paused. "I ain't gonna tell 'em, honest." he said.

I gave a sigh, and explained that Courtney scared me, I thought Duncan could be intimidating but he seemed okay, Gwen wasn't too mean and to be honest, I really didn't mind Alejandro.

Scott kept up his part of the bargain. "I don't think Courtney likes you. She's Duncan's girlfriend, and after he came back from talking to you last night, she wanted to know exactly what he said to you, and what you said back. Duncan thinks you're cute – he told me. Gwen feels sorry for you, but then she's a bleeding heart most of the time. Most of the stuff we do isn't her idea. I don't know what Alejandro thinks, because I can't tell when he's telling the truth and when he's lying."

He talked a little more to me, and then left, locking the door behind him like everyone else. But there was a difference. Not once had he ever treated me as a hostage. Everyone else had told me to do as I was told, or that they wouldn't keep me for long, or that I didn't have to be so scared. Even Gwen had flat out said that it wouldn't get me anywhere to pretend like it wasn't happening. Scott had treated me like...I'm not sure, but he hadn't mentioned anything about me being a hostage at all. I'm not sure what I should have expected, but that definitely wasn't it. Oh, and he kept calling me "sweetheart". I wasn't sure whether I liked that or not.

When Courtney came in that evening to give me food (it was sweet-and-sour pork and rice from Chinese takeout), she barely spoke. All she said was "Whenever you wear something of mine – you know, things from the second drawer down, fold it and put it in the top drawer. And don't sleep in them – I'm not having my clothes creased! Gwen said she left a nightie or something in her drawer – the third one – so you can wear that."

Oh, so that's what the black dress was. That's why the material was silky – it was satin.

To be honest, when I fell asleep that night, I didn't cry again. I felt a little better. At least I had no surprises left. I knew who everyone was, and what to expect. I'd been a little surprised to learn that Courtney was actually Duncan's girlfriend. I guess Courtney did have that green streak in her hair, similar to his mohawk, but they were just so different. Courtney reminded me of some of the girls at my school – the ones that got straight As and were ready to kill any girl within ten miles of their crush. Duncan was...well, he didn't seem to be too bothered about anything, the complete opposite.

Gwen – well, I really couldn't complain about her. She'd been kind of...nice, really. And Alejandro...well, Scott had said he couldn't tell when he was lying or truthful, so that wasn't a good sign. But I personally couldn't help liking him a little.

I wasn't sure whether I liked or disliked Scott. I just couldn't work out why he wanted to talk to me, know me.

I fell asleep that night, still shivering, and feeling confused about these people.

**Poor Brooklyn...the fun has barely started! Please review.**


	5. Chapter 5: Why Are They Like This?

**Right, let's keep going! By the way, I count last chapter as being the first full day, so when I say "third day", it's two days after last chapter. Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132.**

A few more days passed. My boredom was starting to overcome my fears, especially after the third day, when I heard from Gwen that the ransom note had been sent, demanding $400,000. She said that the note claimed that the minute they had it, they'd take me back to Rosseau Lakes and let me go there.

"And if the police get involved?" I asked shyly.

"We gave the impression we're not even nearby." was Gwen's reply. "We gave them your Smartphone number, but we set it so it can't be tracked." She'd just brought my water quota for the day. Finally, she made eye contact with a reassuring look. "Just remember," she said as she got up to left, "Cope. You're starting to look really pale. If you keep going as you are, you might get a chance to see the sky before the week is out."

Seeing only five people in the world wasn't easy. It didn't help that every time it was Courtney's turn, she looked at me like I was dust on her sandals. On the sixth day, I could have sworn that she called me a name I'd never heard before – I wasn't sure what it meant, or how it was spelled.

I was also getting wary of Alejandro. I hadn't minded him the first couple of times, but on the fourth day and his third visit, I first started getting nervous. I hadn't minded his comments at first, but I was starting to realize that he was flirting with me, since he was getting way too familiar, like touching my arm unecessarily, staying longer than he had to – it made me feel uncomfortable. I'd since learned that Duncan and Courtney were nineteen, Scott and Gwen were eighteen, and Alejandro was twenty. Why would someone five years older flirt with me? Aside from the flirting, though, he was always perfectly friendly and surprisingly nice.

Gwen was never exactly friendly, but she wasn't mean, either. She just seemed like she was generally not a people person – not shy, just not someone who liked to socialize. That was okay – I was shy around people different from me.

I didn't see Duncan much at all. I guessed that it was because, even though he wasn't the eldest, he was in charge and wasn't going to bother seeing me.

The only person I saw every single day was Scott. He always came in around midday (yeah, I had a watch with me), and always stayed around half an hour, in which he always wanted to just talk to me. It was never about anything I needed to know – just trivial stuff. In the first three days, I mostly asked the questions. I'd learnt that Scott was from a rural community, and had ended up living in the city because the nearest high school was in a town an hour away from his home. Eventually, he'd dropped out and got by on his own for a few months before meeting the others and joining their gang. But after he'd told me that, he tried to get me to open up. However, I couldn't help being a little suspicious. Scott had a tendency to wear a really sly smile all the time, and I wasn't sure whether he didn't mean to look sly, or if he had an ulterior motive. And while he didn't flirt with me like Alejandro did, he kept calling me "sweetheart" and occassionally would say something a bit flirtatious.

Like on the fourth day, he asked me if I'd ever dated anyone (he'd admitted to me that he was currently single). I'd looked at my shoes and murmured "No. Boys don't notice me. They barely even look at me."

Scott regarded my answer thoughtfully. "In my opinion, any boy that doesn't look at you is missing out."

I stared at him. "What?"

"Just what I said. You're really pretty, sweetheart. You remind me of a girl I knew in high school – I mean, you don't look like her, but..." I saw his face suddenly become harsh and set.

I stayed silent, and after a minute, he relaxed again. "I should go now." I wondered a lot about the girl he mentioned, but I was afraid to bring it up.

Without me really noticing, a week had passed and nothing had changed. But then, at the start of my eighth day in captivity, Duncan came in, this time, not bothering to lock the door.

"Got some good news for you, kid." he said casually. "I'm letting you out of the room for awhile. But," he added, "You're not allowed outside, and we'll all be watching, so don't try to run. If you do..." he didn't finish the threat, but he didn't need to. As he spoke, his blue eyes blazed, and I shivered. I knew that he knew that I already knew that he was someone I shouldn't cross.

I followed Duncan through a maze of hallways and past rooms, until it got to a dark but wide room, about the size of a small theatre. There were a ton of windows, but only around the top, so no one could look in. The room had pieces of furniture and things scattered around – a table, a few chairs and two sofas – but they were placed carelessly and had stains and water marks on them. The others, sans Alejandro, were just hanging around in there.

Courtney had pulled up one of the chairs to the table and was scribbling something in a notebook. Gwen was curled up on one of the more comfortable chairs. She had a pencil and paper too, but her fluid motions with the pencil showed that she was drawing. Scott was stretched out on one of the sofas, eyes closed.

Courtney noticed me first. She dropped the pen and spun around, looking at Duncan incredulously. "You let her _out_?"

"It's not like she's going to go anywhere." Duncan pointed out. "She knows that she can't just run away with all of us around. Beside, we're the ones with the ride. We know she can't drive yet, so if she runs, we just follow her with the van." He paused, looking around. "Where's Alejandro?"

Gwen looked up. "I think he finally convinced Heather to get back with him, so he's probably seeing her. I don't know why he bothers. She'll probably dump him again before the week is out." She went back to drawing.

I couldn't help being surprised. So they saw people outside of their gang? How did they keep things like this secret? And if Alejandro had a girlfriend, then why would he flirt with me?

Duncan looked at me. "Are you just going to stand there all day? I thought you'd want to do something other than stare at the walls. But if you don't, I guess you could just stay locked up all day-"

I shook my head quickly. No way did I want to stay stuck in that little room when I didn't have to be there.

"Okay then, you can stay in here for now." Duncan headed for the door, calling "Gwen, can you keep an eye on her?"

Gwen rolled her eyes. "Can't you find someone else to play babysitter?"

"I can do it." A new voice put in.

I looked over at the sofa. Scott had opened his eyes and was now looking over, pulling himself up to a sitting position. Duncan left, and Scott looked directly at me, patting the space next to him. I sighed and obediently went over.

"So, sweetheart, how do you like getting out of there for once?" he asked.

"It's okay." I answered. "Good. Like there's a chance of freedom."

"I'm guessing you know our ransom demand hasn't been answered yet." Scott said abruptly. "So it looks like you'll be staying here for awhile." He stretched, casually draping an arm around my shoulders.

Courtney, who had gone back to writing something, turned and glared. "Could you stop flirting with her in front of everyone? It's disgusting! And since when did you become such a ladykiller, anyway?"

"Since I got over the way you treated me." Scott replied with a smirk. He whispered to me "When I first met the group, I had a fling with Courtney, but she dumped me three days later. She and Duncan were together before that and now they're always breaking up and getting back together."

"I heard that!" snapped Courtney. "Stop telling her everything and treating her like she's one of us! She's just a worthless little girl who's getting us what we need."

Gwen looked up from her drawing. "Courtney, just block them out if they're annoying you. It's not that hard."

Courtney glared daggers at her. "Oh, so now you're siding with him and the hostage? We're supposed to be friends, and yet you go after every boy I've ever dated!"

"First, I wasn't siding with them – I just told you to block them out. And second, for the last time, Courtney," Gwen said in a frustrated tone, "Duncan and I are just friends!"

"What's this about?" I whispered to Scott.

"Same old thing. Duncan has a history of flings, and Courtney's insecure. They have this argument all the time." he whispered back. He looked like he was enjoying it. "Sometimes it's entertaining to watch."

The tension in the room made me feel uncomfortable, though. I couldn't help the incredulous look I sent at the guy. "What? You're not into watching arguments?" Scott laughed, his arm pulling me a bit closer (I wasn't sure whether he meant to do that or if it was subconscious. "Sweetheart, you don't know what you're missing."

I couldn't help looking at him suspicously. I still didn't know why he wanted to know me or anything. Courtney said he was flirting with me, but why? Did he actually like me, or was it just some kind of mind game?

I was still wondering an hour later when Duncan came back, announced that I'd had enough time out, and personally escorted me back to my room. And I continued to wonder the whole afternoon and evening, only pausing when Gwen delivered the last meal I got for the day.

**I hope that didn't seem too pointless. I'm working on it! Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6: What's His Motive?

**Right, I'm continuing! Thank you for reviewing, Ali6132 (I totally agree about Courtney – someone chose that song for her in a TDI Character Theme Songs video on YouTube, which I did one of – only I used "White Horse" by Taylor Swift for Courtney...and on the subject of other characters, you'll just have to find out), Datgirl45, and the guest reviewer.**

The next morning, Alejandro delivered my water quota – he usually was only on duty in the morning. He gave me a sympathetic smile as he locked the door again. "How are you?" he asked in his usual way.

"Not bad." I admitted. I hadn't truthfully been able to say that, but being out of the room for an hour had definitely made me feel better. As I spoke, I remembered something I'd heard yesterday.

"By the way," I said shyly, "Would you mind if you kept things a little more...platonic? Thing is, sometimes it almost feels like...flirting, and yesterday, everyone said that you have a girlfriend."

Alejandro looked hurt. "Flirting? I've only been trying to be courteous to you, Brooklyn. I was extending the same courtesy to you as I would to all women."

I felt incredibly guilty. "I'm sorry." I mumbled. "It's just...you seemed to find unecessary ways for us to touch. I would rather you didn't do that."

Alejandro still looked very hurt, like I'd maimed his pet kitten or something, but he nodded and said "As you wish. I apologize if I caused you discomfort. It's simply part of my culture, so it is a habit which is hard to break." Then he left, with me still feeling like I'd been the mean one.

Gwen came in to let me out for a while at the beginning of the morning. She gave a small smile as she opened the door. "You're allowed out." she said. "Not outside yet, but anywhere inside. Scott says he doesn't mind watching you again." She paused and then whispered "By the way, I've never seen Scott acting like this, but I think he likes you."

I jumped. "R-really? He actually does this because he likes me?"

"Well, I mean I've never seen him act the way he does around you." Gwen amended. "But when you're not around, he wanders around whistling and smiling all the time, and sometimes he seems to be daydreaming. The last time he did that, it was because he was developing a crush on Courtney. But that time, he was really shy and awkward about it. I think it's a good sign that he's more relaxed around you. I've never seen _any_ guy offer so much innocent physical affection."

"So..." I whispered. "Why are you telling me? Is it really a good idea?"

"You deserve to know." Gwen replied, starting to lead me down the hallway. "I remember when I was about sixteen and nearly lost my shot at my first crush because I was too nervous. Scott has a lot of layers over his heart, but you'll gain my respect for ever if you can get to it."

Scott didn't act any different to me, but I still saw him in a new light. Him having a crush on me opened my eyes. Although he was the least attractive of the three guys, I couldn't help admiring his toned arms and the clearly defined muscle showing through his T-shirt. Every time we touched a little bit, I started to feel electricity. He did the stretching trick again today, but this time, he moved his arm a little further down, so that if he reached around, he'd touch somewhere I'd have to slap him for. I don't know if he was going to.

I looked at him when he did that, and he seemed to understand what I was thinking. "C'mon, chill, sweetheart." he said casually. "It's not like I'm groping you or anything."

Courtney glared over at us. "Scott, whatever you're doing, could you keep it outside of this room? I don't want to hear what you are or aren't doing to that ditz!"

I wasn't sure how to respond to that, but Scott spoke before I could. "First, if she was a ditz, I'd leave her to be one of Alejandro's conquests, and second, you're just jealous that she's prettier than you!"

Courtney gasped, and so did I. I looked up at the ginger boy. "Conquest?"

Scott pulled me closer protectively. He whispered the explanation to me. "You've probably noticed that Alejandro's been flirting with you. Yeah, he has a girlfriend, and it seems like he does love her, but that's never stopped him." I nodded. "Well, he likes to pick just anyone he can find and try to win them. Eventually, he'll either sweet-talk them into letting him, uh, 'conquer' them, or he'll go only so far that the girl is too far gone to even think of stopping him, and then he'll finish off with them. And that's it – usually the girl never sees him again. Courtney's just bitter because she was one of those girls. He tried it on with Gwen, too, but she told him straight that she wasn't interested and he decided she wasn't interesting or attractive enough to continue pursuing."

I narrowed my eyes. "So do you know everything about everyone here?"

"Yeah, I do." Scott grinned mischievously. "I've known 'em for a while – Gwen's the only one who graduated from high school before Duncan persuaded her to join up – and if I didn't make sure I knew their secrets as well as the obvious stuff, how else could I survive? And," he smirked, "It comes in useful if I want to annoy them. Like Duncan hates it if anyone points out his soft side, Alejandro can't stand being called Al, Courtney gets set off if people ignore her, and Gwen gets really miserable whenever our reputation is mentioned, since she considers herself the nice one. I mean", he added quickly, "Not like I want to annoy them all the time, but I can't help it sometimes."

I couldn't help sighing. I wish Gwen hadn't said anything about him having a crush on me. He could tell that I disliked what I was hearing, and that was why he'd said that. I had to be honest – I liked the way he looked, and it was nice that he'd told me about Alejandro...but after he'd said that, I knew I couldn't ever like him as a person. Who would like a manipulator? Sure, I wanted to annoy people...occasionally, but I'd never done it. And I'd never tried to find out anyone's secrets, either.

I didn't say much else for the rest of my time out of my room. Scott offered to take me back after a while, and so he did, but I didn't say a word to him as we went back. He seemed to take the hint and left me in there alone, leaving me to think.

**I've just thought of a plot bunny! Okay, that's good. So the filler will be over for now! Let's see what happens. Please review!**


	7. Chapter 7: What Did He Do?

**I can't wait to continue!**

**Okay, I'm going to start something. I sometimes mention a TD character – not by name, but as a cameo. See if you can find who it is in this chapter, and tell me in your review if you found him/her for a virtual reward!**

**Thanks for reviewing, Datgirl45 and Ali6132. Since my channel is my full name, I don't want to say it here, so email me at sideshowjazz1 gmail . com (delete the spaces) and I'll link the video.**

My second week in captivity was very different to my first week. I got to look around the whole building, and soon realized it was an abandoned factory, with all the machinery cleared out. No wonder the main area was so large! The other rooms in the hallway had been converted into bedrooms, but I only caught a glimpse of them when I walked through the hallways, since the doors were open. So I knew that they all had separate ones. Gwen's one, I noticed, had a sketchbook on the bedside table, and Courtney had a bulletin board that had an old _Vote for Courtney _flag that told me how serious she was about school before she'd joined this gang.

Scott was serious when he said he knew everything about everyone in the gang. When I asked, he'd told me that Courtney had originally wanted to go to law school, but ended up in the gang because she got a taste of rule-breaking from being around Duncan and decided she'd rather be free of expectations. As time went on, I started caring less about the things Scott told me. It wasn't that I didn't feel a bit guilty about it, but some of the things were too interesting not to listen to. I told myself it was for self-preservation, so I knew how not to annoy the gang members, not how to manipulate them.

I also found out how many exits there really were in the building. One of them was only a couple of metres from my room. But no one ever forgot to lock the door.

I was allowed to go outside after another few days, but only for ten minutes at a time, and I wasn't allowed to go more than ten paces from the building and had to wear sunglasses. And I always had to have someone (coughmostlyScottcough) shadow me.

Whenever it was Alejandro's turn to deliver anything to me, I completely avoided looking at him. I couldn't. He often made me feel guilty about it, and even tried to get me to tell him why, but I couldn't. Partly because I didn't want to repeat what Scott had told me, and partly because I just didn't want to sound accusing.

Duncan visited me only once in the second week, on the thirteenth day. I'd already been out for a few hours, and that was the longest I ever got, so I knew he had news when he came in. "Your parents have got the cops involved." he said with a scowl. "I think we've covered our tracks enough, but I think it's time you talked to them." He pushed a piece of paper at me, along with my Smartphone. "Call. Now. And make sure you read exactly what's on there. Don't worry, we've disabled anything that could let them track the call."

I looked down at the piece of paper, frowning. "If I talk like this, they'll know I've been forced into this call."

"Whatever." Duncan shrugged. "It's not like you made this call for pleasantries. Look, get across in the call that you're safe, but that you won't be found until we get what we want." He folded his arms, waiting.  
I wanted to cry as I pressed the contacts button on my Smartphone. The phone picked up on the second ring.

"Mom?" I said.

I could hear my mom's panicked voice. "Brooklyn! Where are you, sweetie? We've got half the state out there looking for you!"

"I...I don't know where I am." I admitted. "I was blindfolded on the way there, so I couldn't tell where we were going. I'm only allowed to call so I can verify the ransom note. I'm alive, and I'm not hurt." My mom was sobbing now, but I forced myself to finish. "But four hundred thousand grand is the only thing that will buy me my freedom." I lowered my voice. "I love you, Mom, and I wish there was another way. But I can't see one." I cut off the call quickly and looked up at Duncan.

He was clearly still annoyed with the turn of events, but I felt a surge of relief when I saw that he wasn't going to be mad at me. "Nice little touch, saying you wish there was another way." His face was serious, and he looked me in the eye. "You know how this will be, don't you? If your parents don't pay up..." he paused.

"Would you kill me?" I whimpered.

Duncan stopped, and almost seemed to laugh at the idea. "Kill you? No way!" He chuckled. "You're giving us way too much credit, kid. We're not killers. Nah, if we disguised you and if you toughened up a bit, I could see you being one of us. That is, once we can trust you not to run." Not that I'd made any attempt before of course. Don't get me wrong, I'd thought about it. But someone was watching me every minute of every day when there was a chance.

Somewhere around the sixteen-day mark, Scott visited me without any reason in the afternoon. He wasn't letting me out or delivering anything.

"Everyone's out." he explained. "Courtney was on at Duncan about how he never takes her anywhere, so he took her out to shut her up. They're probably just going to steal stuff – that's what they did on their first date, and Courtney always talks about how much fun it was. Alejandro said something about this blonde girl he saw giving surfing lessons at the beach – guess she's his next conquest. Gwen just said being inside was driving her crazy and ran off."

That's the thing, Scott didn't stay long. He only stayed long enough to tell me that he knew that things were tough for me but to hang in there. That things weren't as hard as they seemed.

Then, when he left, he turned and winked at me, making me feel all nervous, for some reason. I didn't like him, did I? I mean, the only reason I let him be affectionate was because I didn't want to find out what would happen if I pulled away...right?

But something was missing as Scott left. It took me a few minutes to put my finger on it. Then I realized.

"The lock!" I whispered. He hadn't locked the door – I could go out. And he'd told me that everyone else was out. I peeked out into the hallway, just to be sure. It was deserted. I checked the nearest way out. It wasn't just unlocked – it was open. I was free!

I slipped out (not even realizing that I was still wearing one of Gwen's corsets and skirts and leaving my other clothes behind), and ran out to the street.

It was deserted, but I could see street signs. I had to get into the town, find the police station, get home, turn in the gang...

I wasn't sure if I wanted to do that. After all, Scott had let me escape. I wasn't sure why he'd done that. Did he do it because he really...liked me and didn't want me to suffer any more?

I summoned up all my speed from hockey practice and ran, faster, faster, faster...

After five minutes of sprinting, I could see a Burger King, a few blocks away. I kept running, running, running. My mind kept telling me to go faster. If I just got there, then there would be people, and even if I was found, they couldn't just take me back in front of everyone.

Nearly there, nearly there. I couldn't help slowing down just a little bit now. I just hoped I would get there.

**I know, it might be pretty obvious what comes next, but still. Please review!**


	8. Chapter 8: Why Me?

**Hey, let's continue, shall we? Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132 and Datgirl45. I posted my channel on deviantart - my name on there is SideshowJazz17. I've recently posted all couple and character theme songs for TD, as well as two music videos - "Summer Nights" and "Mamma Mia", and all 52 contestants ranked.**

I managed to make it into the Burger King, and my face screwed up at the scent of fat. But there were people in there.

"I..." I panted, "Please...I have to...call...the poli-"

"Hey!" Suddenly, a peppy voice rang out and a friendly (well, it seemed like it) arm was draped around my shoulders. "Why didn't you tell anyone you were going out? You know Mom gets all freaked out if you don't tell her where you're going every minute. What were you doing, anyway, running a marathon?"

I looked in horror at the brunette with the green streak smiling brightly and steering me towards the exit. I didn't know how Courtney had found me, or what she was pretending, but I knew one thing, and she told me the same thing when we were out.

Well, first, she pulled out her cellphone, and dialed a number. "Yes, I found her." she said into the phone. "At Burger King. She was going to try to call the cops from there, I think. Yeah, I know...I pretended to be her sister and went out with her...yeah, I've got her now." As she spoke, I tried to move away, but Courtney's arm around my shoulders was as immovable as iron.

"Have you got any ideas on how?" she said into the phone. As she listened, her eyes lit up, and then dimmed again. "You told him no? But that sounded like a good plan." She gave a sigh. "Oh, okay. I thought we were too nice from the start, anyway. By the way, any idea how she got out?...He _didn't!..._Are you sure he didn't do it on purpose? Okay, fine, bye."

Finally, she looked around, and snapped at me. "You are in _so _much trouble now. Mind telling me how you made Scott let you go? Not that we don't already know." she muttered. "You're really lucky that Duncan's already decided how to punish you. I thought it was a good idea to let Alejandro deal with it – being a slut around one guy...it's not really such a big step to be another guy's whore – but luckily for you, Duncan already told him no."

The gang's van pulled up next to us, and Courtney pulled me into the back, immediately blindfolding me again and winding the wire around my wrists and tying them so tightly that I could barely move my hands. I wasn't sure why, but I knew I shouldn't ask.

"I'm impressed, kid." Duncan said. He almost sounded amused, but then his voice turned serious. "But I'm not happy at all. So you can say goodbye to your sight for the next few days, because your hands are going to be where they are now, so you can't reach, and that blindfold's staying right where it is."

I couldn't help the silent sobs behind the blindfold.

"I think she's crying." Courtney announced, sounding so pleased that I wanted to scream. I felt her move the blindfold slightly for a moment. "Yes, she is." She leaned close to my ear and whispered menacingly "When we get back, you really will have something to cry about."

It felt like the first day I was here, over two weeks ago. Courtney led me back to my room, blindfolded. But unlike then, she didn't take it off me. When she spoke, she had a self-satisfied tone. "Maybe Duncan thinks that this is enough punishment, but I think there's a more fitting punishment for you. Oh, I won't let you have it today – there's no fun if you know when it's coming. But it's coming, all right. Oh," and here I heard her footsteps moving away, "By the way, yes, it _is_ what I was talking about earlier."

Finally, she slammed and locked the door.

I knew what she was telling me. She'd said that she thought it was a fitting punishment to let Alejandro...I couldn't even think the word. What was worse...I hadn't done anything. Scott had let me go – I hadn't even said a word about it. Courtney had hinted that I was being the seductive one, when really, I'd done nothing.

I heard the door being unlocked again, and I tensed up, even though Courtney had said it wouldn't be today that I would...yeah.

"I was wondering if that would happen." It was Gwen's voice. She sounded serious, but a bit amused at the same time. How many people found my escape attempt that interesting? "The cliché failed attempt at escape. It's like this is a movie or something." She paused. After a few seconds, I heard a sigh. "I'm not going to yell at you or anything. I would've done the same when I was fifteen. But what you don't understand is that we actually _need _the money. None of us have any qualifications, and we don't have any way to get them without money. The minute I have enough money to go to university and get job experience, I'm outta here."

"Are you mad at me for running?" I ventured.

I could tell Gwen was thinking it over. Finally, she said "A bit, I guess. But if there was a better way to get the money we need, I'd do it. And it's not like you did it for no reason."

Scott also visited me that afternoon...or maybe it was evening, I couldn't tell. I just heard the door unlock and the familiar voice say "Guess it didn't work how I planned, huh?"

I stayed silent.

"Sweetheart?" Scott attempted to get me to answer. "Come on, talk to me."

I sighed and muttered "I don't know what to say. That stupid attempt got me this blindfold, and Courtney says she's still going to do more."

"I overheard her talking to Alejandro." Scott told me. "They were talking quietly, but I heard them say your name, and I think I know what Courtney was asking him to do."

"I'm scared." I murmured. "Really scared. Why did you do it? Why did you leave the door unlocked? Truthfully?"

Scott gave a sigh, and I heard him move for a minute. Finally, he came back. "I had to check..." he muttered. "Gwen was supposed to be making sure that I didn't leave the door unlocked again, but she's only watching from down the corridor, so she won't hear. I told everyone else that it was accidental. But I only visited you so you knew everyone else was out, and then gave you the chance."

"But why?" I repeated.

Scott paused. Then I suddenly felt something. Some kind of pressure.

It was a kiss. My first kiss ever – and it was with an eighteen-year-old guy from a street gang. Half of me wanted to cry, having lost that chance of my first kiss being with someone really special, while the other half...kind of enjoyed it.

To be honest, it wasn't too bad of a kiss. Scott's lips were dry and chapped, but they were also soft and moved against mine in a way that made me tingle.

After a moment, he broke away, but I could still almost feel him as he spoke. His voice was nearly a whisper. "If Courtney has her way, you're going to lose something." he whispered. "If I can stop it, I will, but if I can't...there's one thing no one can take from you. I'll keep it safe... and if you ever want to take it back...my lips will always welcome you."

I couldn't help scoffing, but I also couldn't help sighing. I didn't know how to feel. Half of me wanted to slap him. The other half wanted him to kiss me again. Was I going back on what I said? Did I like him now?

Maybe, I thought, I did. Scott wasn't a good guy, I knew that much. But he had tried to help me out, getting nothing in return. Could that be enough?

Finally, he spoke again. "I left the door unlocked because I like you." he admitted. "And...I guess...there's someone I once knew in high school...and I know she would've wanted me to do the right thing. I didn't want to let you go, because I want you here, but it was like she was telling me what I should do." After he said that, he immediately left, making me confused, still tense, and blind as ever.

And this time, he locked the door.

**I know, this probably sucks, but still...anyone want to guess who that person Scott is referring to is? I don't like the pairing, but I'm figuring that it works in this universe.**


	9. Chapter 9: Why Does She Hate Me?

**Ooh, this is going to be interesting. Thanks for reviewing, Datgirl45 (nice try, but not quite right) and Ali6132 (Yeah, I've heard that song before, and it does work...and I didn't have "The Bitch Song", so I had to work with what I had. BTW, DJ's song should be "With A Little Help From My Friends" by the Beatles or "Mama" by the Spice Girls).**

I think Courtney had decided to give me a little bit of mercy, because I didn't have to wait very long for it to happen. In fact, it was only noon the next day.

I tensed again as the door opened, and I heard a familiar, faux regretful sigh. "I told Courtney that if she wanted to really punish you, she could simply make her threat empty and keep you on edge for days. As it is, I don't think you'll find it as much of a punishment as she thinks."

I could hear Alejandro's footsteps coming closer, and in a moment of panic, it was one of the things I focused on. Everyone wore different shoes, and they all sounded different. Courtney had sandals, Duncan had Converse, Alejandro had boots that seemed suspiciously high-quality, Gwen had much higher boots, and Scott had the quietest footsteps, because he was often barefoot.

"You wouldn't really do this, would you?" I managed to get out. "I mean, I'm only fifteen! What if the police do find this place – that's another crime on the list!"

Alejandro was close now, too close for comfort. "I know you're fifteen." he said in a soft calming voice. "But one day, you're going to have this happen to you, anyway. Let me put it this way – would you rather it be painful, with someone who has no idea what they're doing – or with someone who knows how to do this, meaning it won't be painful unless you are...resistant?"

It wasn't so much what he said, but how he said it. He treated this instance as an everyday occurrence. Maybe it was for him. And I knew I was most likely going to lose my virginity some way, but I wanted to lose it to someone I loved. But what he was saying was messing with my mind. As much as I hated to admit it, he sounded like he was making a valid point.

"Am I at least...you know...protected?" I said pleadingly. I could feel my face blushing furiously.

"What kind of person would I be if I hadn't thought about that?" Alejandro replied, his voice still level and calm. He paused. "When I pursued Courtney, she asked the same question. I'm not meant to let you take the blindfold off, so..." I felt one of his hands touch my own and guide it to touch a cone-shaped piece of crackling plastic. That was a small mercy for me. But not enough of a mercy to erase the doom of what was coming.

I felt Alejandro cup my face and kiss me. It was gentle – gentler than I'd imagined he'd be. "Listen," he whispered against my lips. "Courtney asked me to do this because she thought it would destroy you in every way. I agreed to do her a favour because I never turn down the offer of someone as pretty as you." He ran a hand through my hair, a surprisingly calming gesture. "But I don't believe in causing too much suffering. It'll hurt enough. If you want to have as painless an experience as possible, lie on the sofa and stay there. You don't need to be so tense."

He didn't kiss me again, but he kept stroking my hair and holding me close, trying to get me to relax a little. It actually worked, and within five minutes, my clothes were off and a finger ghosted across my...I hadn't even touched that part before. I squirmed, scared. I just wanted out, but I couldn't move as the finger slowly slid to somewhere on the inside of that part.

"Preparation. It'll hurt less when I get to the-"

There was suddenly the sound of the door being flung open and I crouched up.

"Alejandro, didn't we already discuss this before?" It was Duncan. His voice was completely calm and casual. "And I'm pretty sure we established that we do not need rape on our list of criminal acts, especially if it's underage. And don't try telling me she wanted it, I can tell the kid's terrified."

I heard Alejandro get up and leave without a word, and I felt his weight getting off me. I felt the door close and suddenly, my clothes were thrown at me. "Get dressed." Duncan's voice ordered. "And you can stop trying to cover while you're doing it – I'm not looking at you. I just have a few questions to ask."

When I'd finished putting my clothes on, I whispered meekly "All right."

"Question one," Duncan began, "What the hell exactly happened?"

"He came in and said something about Courtney asking him to do this, then he kissed me and took my clothes off, and that's it." I said quietly.

"Courtney?" Something in Duncan's voice changed. "Are you saying she planned this?"

I felt my eyes welling up behind the blindfold. "She doesn't like me for some reason. And she thinks I used seduction to get Scott to let me go."

Duncan scoffed. "Right." he said. "Dude had something for you long before he 'accidentally' left the door unlocked. But considering...I think that was punishment enough." He finally untied my wrists, and let me take the blindfold off myself, making me shade my eyes from the sudden light.

"By the way, I hear your parents are close to paying up if the cops don't find you in the next week." Duncan added with a sly grin. "No more escape attempts and you'll be home soon. But," he added, "You're not allowed out for another three days. And once that's over, I'm not letting Scott watch you without someone else around to make sure he doesn't try to let you go again."

I shrugged. That was understandable.

For the next few days, Gwen was the only one delivering food and water. She never said much. I wondered if she was still annoyed about my escape attempt, but I wasn't about to ask. On the other hand, there was a question I did dare to ask.

"Is there a specific reason why it's only you coming here now?" I ventured softly on the third day.

Gwen shrugged. "Kind of. Duncan just can't be bothered for some reason. He's decided he's not doing the running unless there's some development in the ransom thing that he thinks you should know. And Courtney's so furious that things didn't work out the way she wanted that she refuses to see you. She _was _mad at Duncan for stopping it at first – but he managed to get her to stop yelling two nights ago." She smirked slightly. "I have no problem myself with letting Scott do it, but he's been told he can't do it alone because everyone thinks he'll let you go again. He _said _he left the door unlocked accidentally – but I don't think any of us bought it. And, to be honest, after what happened, I'd rather do this than let Alejandro do it. Yeah, he was doing Courtney a favour, but I figured you wouldn't want to see him again."

I smiled a little. "Thanks. And...can I ask you one more thing. Does Scott...ever...you know...does he want to see me?"

Gwen laughed humourlessly. "Are you kidding? The only reason he hasn't come is because none of us have time to supervise. And we're not leaving the hideout at the same time again. It's not what he says – but I know that look. And last night, I saw him whittling a piece of wood that was taking shape. And it had a braid and a skirt, like yours." She frowned. "It's pretty interesting, actually...the last time he carved a girl, she had long wavy hair and was really tiny. He wouldn't say who it was."

"I wonder if it was that high school girl he mentioned..." I mused out loud.

Gwen had a little smirk on her face. "So...you want me to tell him that you miss him?"

"Would you?"

"Of course." Gwen said seriously. "You seem like a nice person. Why shouldn't I?"

And for the first time since the escape, I smiled.

**Hope this chapter wasn't too boring! Please review!**


	10. Chapter 10: When Can I Go?

**Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132, Michelle Rita (that's what I was going for), and Shelly Marsh (Courtney is irrational at the best of times and sees Brooklyn as a pawn, so she gets unreasonably angry when things don't work out the way she wanted).**

When I was finally allowed out, everyone was in the main room. Gwen had, again, taken the responsibility of letting me out. Courtney was typing something out on an electronic device, shooting glares at Duncan frequently, who was stretched out on one of the couches, eyes closed, listening to music through headphones that was so loud I could hear it. Alejandro appeared to be on his way out, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I didn't want to have to face him, not after what happened.

Scott was on the other sofa. His expression was of frustration, but the minute he saw me, his eyes lit up. Before he spoke, I wordlessly joined him on the sofa. He immediately put his arm around my shoulders. It was like since the kiss, we didn't really have to say anything. We knew we were more than...whatever we were before. We weren't friends, exactly, but I guess we'd describe our relationship as more than friends.

Duncan opened his eyes, and pulled off his headphones for a moment when he saw me. "Gwen, you'll watch her, right?"

Gwen rolled her eyes. "Since we've nearly got what we want, I don't think she's going to make another run, but yes, I'm watching her."

Courtney looked up and snapped "Why don't you ever ask _me _to watch her? I'm the one who found her! Don't you think I'd be able to keep her?"

Duncan raised half of his unibrow. "I was just under the impression you didn't want to watch her."

"I don't!" said Courtney furiously. "But you always ask Gwen! What makes her better than me?"

A smirk appeared on Duncan's face. "Nothing. I always stick my friends with the chores, not the chicks who I think are really hot."

Courtney huffed and turned back to her device. Duncan pulled his headphones back on.

"That means she didn't get the answer she wanted, but she'll settle for the one she did get." Scott whispered to me. "Courtney is getting really annoying now...but I still think she's kind of pretty when she's mad." He shrugged, and then turned his full attention to me. "You know, I missed you, sweetheart. I had a question I wanted to ask you."

I smiled a little. "What was that?"

Scott grinned back. "First, it's nice that you can smile again. And second..." he paused, muttering to himself. "I screwed it up when I asked Courtney, I have to do it right..." He looked back up at me, and finally asked "Will you...um...date me?"

I looked at the boy. He was far from the kind of guy I'd dreamt about. Sneaky, a bit sadistic (he enjoys arguments - seriously), manipulative with using people's secret feelings against them...but he'd never done that to me. He knew my secrets from my file, and didn't once use them against me. He'd talked to me normally, told me stuff I actually wanted to know. I actually felt safe when he put his arm around me, and he'd made my first kiss an experience that left me wishing for another.

I looked up at him shyly. "Yes. Yes, I will."

That was it. Scott suddenly jumped up and spun me around before kissing me again ."You said yes!" he crowed. "I can't believe it! I never thought a rich kid like you would ever say it, even if you did like me, but you did!"

I couldn't help a little scowl. "Rich kid doesn't mean snob. I don't care what status you are in life, as long as you treat me with the respect I deserve."

"Of course!" Scott said, his dark blue eyes sincere. "I know what I'm doing this time."

Courtney looked up and said "Well, maybe this time at least, you'll be able to say 'girlfriend' and 'boyfriend' at the appropriate times."

"Like how I can say that Brooklyn is now my GIRLfriend?" Scott shot back. He looked at me. "Would you prefer me to call you by name?"

I shrugged. "I don't mind. To be honest, I've gotten used to you calling me 'sweetheart'."

"Well, that's how it's going to stay, then. I have to say, I've gotten used to calling you that."

At that moment, some familiar music started playing. I recognized it immediately – it was just a pop song, but it meant something.

"_Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy, so here's my number..." _That was my ringtone. I know, "Call Me Maybe" was the most cliché song I could've picked, but I didn't care.

And sure enough, Courtney pulled my phone out of her pocket, checked the caller ID, and answered, holding a voice box to change her voice. "Hello...yes...yes...all right, in cash...yes, of course...okay." She held out the phone to me. "Answer it, and say you're okay."

"Hello?" I said into the phone.

"Brooklyn?" It was my dad's voice. "Are you all right?"

"Yes, I'm fine." I said. "Uh-huh...yeah, they promised to take me back to school once they have the cash...I want to go straight back, really. I want to get back to normal...really? Well, can I at least stay until the end of the semester? It's in two months...okay, I promise I won't leave school premises on day trips. Bye."

According to the phone call, I was going to have to start at a new private girls' school closer to home. This kidnapping thing was so scary that my parents didn't want me to stay at Rosseau Lakes. But they were going to let me finish out tenth grade as long as I didn't leave the school itself, and then I'd start eleventh grade at a day school.

Courtney was actually smiling. She seemed genuinely pleased. "Tomorrow." she said happily. "We get the money tomorrow, and the day after that..." she couldn't take the smile off her face.

Gwen smiled slightly. She looked over at me. "Well, I guess I better give you the cover story now."

"Cover story?" I remembered Duncan saying something about that. "Can't I just say I was taken away by two guys, around thirty, who wore balaclavas every time I saw them, and I was kept in a dark cramped room every day, only given the bare minimum to survive by. Then when they let me go, they basically blindfolded me, drove me there, and dropped me outside, and I barely even got a good look at them before they drove off again, and I didn't even know what the vehicle looked like."

Gwen smirked. "Funny, that was pretty much the same as the cover story I made up for you. You missed the bit about having to use a bucket to go to the bathroom, and having no shower, but I think you'll have an easy time when you're questioned."

I didn't say anything, but silently, I worried about said questioning. I could make that up, sure, but I didn't know if I could lie convincingly. I hated lying and usually didn't do it. As a result, when I did, everyone could usually tell. There was only one thing I could do instead of lying, and that was – avoid. That was what I'd have to do. If I told the truth, I'd be really vague. Names, hair colour, possible age and that was it. I didn't know where we were, or anyone's last name, so at least I didn't know enough to help them.

What would happen when I finally got to go home?

**What indeed? Stay tuned – it's far from over!**


	11. Chapter 11: Can We Stay A Couple?

**Let's continue! And again, it's TD cameo time! Which unnamed character is mentioned in this chapter?**

**Thank you for reviewing, Ali6132 (and yes, I think it does) and Sideshow Cellophane 26 (yes, it was Bridgette...I guess I kind of write Alejandro a bit semi-sympathetic and Courtney tends to be mean...as for the question...it's answered in this chapter!).**

The gang was as good as their word. The day after they had their money, they started the two-hour drive to my school in their old van. Courtney blindfolded me again, not wanting me to know the route, but it was okay. I didn't try to take it off, and Scott came in the back with me. I stayed cuddled up to him the whole time, while Duncan drove, Courtney sat in the front next to him, and Gwen and Alejandro took the seats just in front.

"Will we really see each other again?" I whispered.

"Trust me, sweetheart, our backgrounds won't keep me from you." Scott answered. "What kind of criminal would I be if I didn't know how to sneak into your dorm room without waking anyone up, and then taking you out for the night and getting you back before dawn?" At the word 'dawn', his voice suddenly faded a little.

"No sneaking into my room at night." I said in a jokingly stern voice, but then, I had to ask. "You sounded sad when you said 'dawn.'"

Scott gave a sigh. "Of course. You never got to hear it, did you?" he said softly. "Dawn was the name of a girl I used to know – she was two years below me when I was a junior in high school. I hated her at first – she acted all sweet and innocent, but she kept finding out people's secrets and mentioning them out loud – she only said it to them, but still. It creeped me out. One time she even said that I wasn't held enough as a kid or something totally ridiculous. But...after a while, I started seeing this other side to her. The side that really wanted to help people, and I'd never seen anything like that before. I thought selflessness was a myth. But that's what Dawn had. And I liked her. But by that time, it was too late – I'd been cruel to her too many times, and she hated me. I guess..." He paused. "I guess that I was able to be nice to you, because I saw that same innocence, and I couldn't ruin my shot with another girl. And after that...I actually developed the same feelings. I know you're not Dawn, I know that, Brooklyn. I don't expect you to be her. But I'm never going to forget her."

I gave a sigh. "She was your first love, right?" I whispered. "No one's going to ask you to forget her. And I'm glad you don't expect me to be her, because I don't find secrets and tell people. And I'm not crazy enough to say I'm selfless. All I ask is, if I'm going to be your girlfriend, for you to want me. I like you too, a ton. I didn't know if I would, at first. I mean, I thought I never would when you said knowing secrets was good because you knew how to get under people's skin. But you treated me right. And, as long as you want me for me, and continue to treat me well, that's all I need."

"And that's it. I do." Scott paused, and then spoke in a brighter tone. "Anyway, I hear you're moving back to Toronto at the end of the year to live with your parents. You might see more of me than you think."

I giggled. "I don't know whether I should hope so or not."

Finally, Duncan pulled up outside the college, and said "You've got two minutes before we're outta here. Can't say it hasn't been fun." While I untied the blindfold, he turned from the seat to give me his trademark smug grin.

Courtney gave me a tight little smile, but said nothing. I knew she was glad to get rid of me.

"Farewell, Brooklyn. I'll miss you." Alejandro said in his most sincere voice, but I was wise now and didn't look at him as I mumbled an answer.

If Gwen had been more of a girly type, I would've hugged her, but I got the feeling she wasn't that kind of person, so I just gave her a shy smile as a goodbye.

Finally, I shared one last kiss with Scott, before I was ready to face my old life again.

I can't really go into all the details when I walked into admin, got everything sorted, saw my friends, was allowed to spend the day up in my room to get my bearings. But then, in the late afternoon, two members of the police came to interrogate me. I guess it was my fault – the head did ask if I was comfortable with talking about what happened, and I'd said I was. It wasn't like their interrogation was long and gruelling, though. They didn't grill me too much. They just asked me questions about who I was taken by and did I know anything about them. And I tried to use the cover story, but the words just wouldn't come.

"There were five of them." I managed to say truthfully. "All at least eighteen. One of them said she wanted to go to university and get some qualifications. They wanted the money because none of them had jobs and they needed it to survive."

"So did you see what they looked like?" the policewoman asked, smiling encouragingly. "Any of them? Would it help if they were on file? Any idea if any of them have a juvenile record?"

I remembered being told that Duncan had been in and out of juvie several times while he was still in high school, but I didn't say anything.

All the same, I ended up being shown faces, and to my horror, I did find Duncan on file, here in Ontario. A younger version of him scowled out of the picture, with stuff below about vandalism, indecent exposure, low-level stuff like that. He was right next to some redhead who had apparently blown up part of a marine base.

None of the others were on file, and I managed to bluff my way out of recognizing Duncan.

"What about the person you were talking about? The person who wanted to go to university?"

Gwen was one of the people I wouldn't want to sell out. I desperately wanted to sell out Courtney and Alejandro, but not any of the others. I wouldn't tell the police about them.

"Most of the time, they were quite nice to me." I said. "I had clothes changes, and a bed and bathroom. But there were a couple who weren't." I didn't mention them by name. I just described them. "She has brown hair with a green streak in it, dark eyes, a few freckles, and she's very tanned and very curvy. He's dark, kind of European – Spanish or something – and has green eyes and dark hair, down to about shoulder-length. She wanted to have him..." I couldn't say it. "She told him to...make me one of his...conquests." That was the only time I started crying. "I mean..."

I knew it was natural to cry about this, but I was so ashamed when I did it. After a couple of minutes, I spoke up again. "I don't know why I'm making a fuss about it – he didn't actually get that far...one of the others stopped him. He did..._touch _me, but he was very...uh...he kept trying to calm me down and make things easier for me."

I wasn't surprised that the policewoman interviewing me was surprised. "That's very unusual behaviour for a rapist, especially one who wasn't close to you earlier."

"I don't think he'd really done it directly before." I managed to choke out. "One of the others told me that he had a steady girlfriend, but that he had several conquests that she didn't know about. Usually, they told me, he just sweet-talked them into it, and they agreed consciously. He knew I wouldn't want it, no matter what he said to me, but he said what he was doing would help and make the real thing less painful."

I kept quiet after that, making out that it was too distressing for me to say anything more. I was sure I hadn't given up enough information for any of them to be found.

My dorm mates didn't say much to me, either. I wondered if things would be able to fall back into their natural routine.

**I don't know...what do you think, reviewers? Oh, and PS, no, I am NOT, repeat NOT, a Dott fan. In fact, it's one of my least favourite pairings along with Skave (that was just handled badly). I ship Bawn, actually. But thing is, I liked All-Stars Scott – a bit dim and hurt a lot, but still a bit sneaky and totally adorkable (yes, you read that right) when he was into Courtney. So I thought that Dott might actually fit into this fic.**


	12. Chapter 12: Where Is He?

**Let's move on. Thanks for reviewing, Sideshow Cellophane 26 (the redhead was supposed to be a reference to Izzy) and Ali6132 (It was Izzy, and, well...he didn't have to go along with Courtney's plan, guy just has some kind of complex or something – or is so used to doing this that it doesn't feel like a big thing anymore...and now you mention it...yeah, I could probably recognize your reviews by your outro. And yes, Brooklyn was kidnapped on a day trip to Toronto, so the whole gang lives there – Brooklyn's boarding school isn't, but she's moving back home at the end of sophomore year).**

As the days passed, the routine stayed the same. My dorm mates started talking to me normally again, I wasn't given special treatment past a fortnight, and I was grateful.

One night, after a month had passed (only one month until the summer), I asked my friends "You know what happened last April? Were there any questions you wanted to ask? Cause I think I'm ready to answer them."

There was a pause. Jan and Katie just stared at me. Finally, Amber spoke up. "Yeah. What _didn't _you tell the cops?" An interested gleam lit up her eyes.

"Tons." I admitted, blushing. "I only really told them stuff about two of them. And there were five."

"Names?" Amber pressed. "Looks?"

"Courtney was the mean one." I answered. "And Alejandro...he was really good looking, but so seductive it was scary." I paused. "Actually, Duncan, who was like the leader, he was pretty fair on me."

"Fair would've been letting you go!" Katie spoke up.

"They actually needed the money!" I protested. "Gwen even said once she got the qualifications, she'd leave the gang – but she needed the money to get into university!"

There was a pause. It was Jan who spoke next. "That's four people, right? Who's the other one? What were they like?"

"Scott." I murmured. "He was..." I paused. "I don't know. I know he was sneaky and a bit cruel...but not to me. He'd read my school file. Gwen told me that he had a crush on me, and at first, I didn't think I could like him, but..."

Amber scowled. "Excuse me? Are you telling me you like a delinquent? What next? You guys kissed? Or slept together?"

"No!" I said quickly to her second suggestion. "I don't think I'll sleep with anyone ever, actually. Not after what nearly happened to me there." I shuddered, remembering that day.

I didn't tell them any more. But I still daydreamed. I had to wonder what everyone was doing now. Mostly I daydreamed about Scott. I hadn't known him for long, yet he'd managed to win my affection. I didn't love him, not really, but I couldn't deny that I liked him a lot, and I was attracted to him. It didn't hurt that he wasn't too bad at kissing, either – a little lip balm and he'd be perfect.

The last month passed. I was finally going to leave. I'd spend junior year at home, and probably be on house arrest, I knew. Not that I didn't like my home – we had a heated swimming pool, a spa bathtub, and a TV screen as big as movie theatre screens, as well as all the other comforts – super-soft carpeting, an ice-making refrigerator, and a massage chair. And my bedroom was pretty awesome – spacious and comfy. But I just knew I'd be stuck there, because the kidnap had really shaken things up.

Even when I got home, I wondered what the gang was doing. I pictured Gwen in a university lecture room making notes, Alejandro flirting with some unsuspecting girl, Duncan pulling a small-time heist, Courtney writing a to-do list. And I pictured Scott...but I couldn't imagine what he'd be doing. He'd sort of implied that we'd see each other again, but I wasn't sure if that would happen. It's not like I'd be able to get out during the summer.

For the first month of the summer, I was pretty much right. I was only allowed out if someone was with me. That was okay – I had something to do. I did have a summer assignment, but since I was changing schools, I didn't have to do it. But it was a good way to kill I would've otherwise used as a way to get a new wardrobe. And possibly some dark red streaks in my hair – subtle, but still enough to make my hair more noticeable. Hey, at least it would've been a new way to identify me if I went missing again.

I was allowed out alone a few times during the second month, but only if I explained exactly where I was going, who I was going to meet with, and what time I was going to be back. And one minute past five did not count as five o'clock.

Near the end of the second month, I was planning to just go to the store around the corner to get an ice lolly or something, because I needed something cold – I mean, I would've taken a brain freeze over the late July heat. I was starting to long for September, even though it would mean starting all over again at a new school.

But just as I passed an alley, a familiar sense of panic shot through me as two arms were suddenly wrapped around me, pinning my arms to my sides. One hand slid up to cover my mouth before I could scream. The panic waned when I heard the voice in my ear.

"Sweetheart, I'm gonna have to ask you to stop struggling, or I might have to use more restraint." I immediately recognized the voice and went still. Finally, he covered my eyes and spun me around, before letting go of my eyes only to place his hands on my shoulders.

"Scott, you jerk." I laughed. "You really freaked me out."

"What can I say, sweetheart?" my boyfriend teased. "I haven't seen you for the last four months. So when I saw you out on your own for once, I had to grab the opportunity. I missed you. A lot."

I sighed. "So...what has everyone else been doing?" I asked.

Scott shrugged. "Gwen applied for some Arts college. She's starting there September, so she's leaving us for good. Courtney left for awhile, saying the gang was dragging her down, but she came back last week. Alejandro persuaded Heather to join up with us – you know, his girlfriend?"

I nodded, remembering.

"We're still living in the same place." Scott added. "But I'll kind of miss the tension going around when Gwen's gone. She and Heather already can't stand each other." He whispered the next part. "To be honest, I can't stand Heather either, but I'm not going to tell her that." Finally, he grinned. "Wanna come visit? I've told everyone that if I find you, I might bring you back for awhile. If no one's found us yet, they won't now. And with my share of that money, I got some wheels." He gestured to a vehicle which, as I'd only seen it out of the corenr of my eye, I'd dismissed as some junk. It turned out to be a motorbike.

"Well..." I hesitated. "My mom expects me home in like five minutes. I'll go back and tell her I'm meeting some friends and that I won't be back for another three hours, cool?"

Scott grinned. "Don't forget, I know your address. I'll be waiting outside for you."

Within the next ten minutes, I was on the back of a motorbike, clinging onto Scott as he drove like crazy.

**Hope that chapter wasn't too boring! Next up: Brooklyn meets Heather! Please review!**


	13. Chapter 13: How Is Everyone?

**Right on! Let's get this chapter started! Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132 (as the master of sneaking around, Scott has read her school file, so...), Sideshow Cellophane 26 and Datgirl (no need to apologize, I love reviews, but I won't yell at you if you don't review – in fact, I probably won't be able to find you to yell at, but, y'know).**

When we got to the old building, Courtney didn't seem to be around (thankfully), but Duncan was. He raised an eyebrow when Scott helped me off the motorcycle and slipped an arm around me as we walked to the entrance.

"Huh, never had a hostage return to the scene of the crime." the leader of the gang joked. "Usually it's the criminals."

"You'd bring your girlfriend over if she wasn't in the gang already." Scott replied. "The only reason Alejandro never brought Heather over until now was because he didn't want to put her off."

Duncan shrugged. "Well, it doesn't seem like Heather's put off. In fact, she's pretty good at what we do." He shot his trademark smile at me. "Hope your stay won't be as long as last time, Brooklyn. And a word of advice – when you meet Heather, you might want to block out everything she says."

I don't know what I expected Heather to look like, but I was pretty stunned. She was really pretty, with thick dark hair to her waist and Asian features. But she made me feel uncomfortable all the same. Her grey eyes were cold and critical as they swept over me.

It was even harder for me to see Alejandro again, but at least he was pleasant, as if nothing at all had happened. He simply introduced both of us.

"So, you're the girl they held for ransom?" Heather said, her expression still cold. She had a sort of "ice queen" vibe about her – beautiful, but deadly. "How come they chose you?"

I shrugged. "Wealth, I guess. I couldn't help it, but my family happened to be able to buy me out." I'd become a bit more daring since my three weeks in captivity. Before that, I'd probably feel so intimidated by Heather that I'd probably have to stammer out my answer. But I just felt cool as anything and answered normally.

Scott put his arm around me. "And I for one think that choosing her was a good decision."

Heather rolled her eyes, rapidly losing interest. "Whatever, dirt farm boy. I can tell that."

Scott didn't seem too bothered about her insult. "I don't take it personally." he explained. "She's like that to everyone. Most of the time, she calls Gwen 'weird goth girl', and to be honest, half the time it seems like she despises Alejandro, the way she treats him. She's not nice around Courtney and Duncan, either, but as long as Duncan doesn't tease her, or Courtney doesn't get bossy with her, she isn't mean to them." He chuckled. "Besides, I _did _grow up on a dirt farm, so technically she's just stating a fact. Anyway," and at this point, we started walking down the hallway together, "I realized recently that you never got to see my room." He pushed open the door to a room. It was almost bare except for the unmade bed, the pine table, and a bunch of wooden statues. Among them, I saw one of a girl that I remembered Gwen mentioning – petite with long wavy hair. I wondered now if that girl was supposed to be Scott's first crush – Dawn. But did it really matter?

"I know what you're thinking." Scott smirked. "You hate it. It's pretty much what my room looked like at home, too, except I hadn't whittled as many statues then." He waved a hand towards the wooden statues. " Anyway, I've been able to get to the windows in your house and I figured out which one was your room easy, since it's not like mine at all.. I figured your room was going to look that way – big and neat – although I gotta say, I didn't expect the duvet covers to have pink skulls on them." I blushed. I still liked the covers, although I'd only bought them as a joke.

"How come you never let me know you were there?" was all I could ask.

Scott laughed at my expression. "That was before the school year ended. I figured that if I hung around while you were at home, I'd be locked up within minutes if anyone caught me. I may be a master at being undetected, but I know when to be cautious." He paused. "But if you want me around, you can always make up something to your parents. You have a lock on your door, right?" That made me blush again.

"You know, sweetheart, you look really pretty when you blush. Anyway, as I was saying, I know my room's not decorated like yours, but it does have what is essential. Anyway, speaking of locks..." He pushed the bedroom door closed. "Now," he said in a lower voice, "Finally, I can..." And with that, he kissed me. It was longer than the times we'd kissed before. By the time it ended, we were sitting on Scott's bed together. Scott only broke the kiss to murmur, "You don't know how much I've missed this," and then attached his lips to mine again.

Before I knew it, I was in my first makeout session ever. I'd read about them, of course, but I hadn't known what it would be like. I hadn't imagined making out with someone three years older than me in a very basic bedroom, on an unmade bed. And whatever I'd imagined, how it felt was not something that could be imagined. I didn't lose any of my clothes as we made out, but I couldn't deny that I sort of wanted to. I couldn't have remembered that one incident before if I'd wanted to remember it – all I could think about was how good it felt to be loved that way. Scott was clearly not the most experienced at this. His lips, anywhere from below my ear to above my collarbone, just made me feel like I had to have more. But he didn't seem to know what to do with his hands. Sometimes I impatiently just moved them to where I wanted them to be. But once I gave him a little guidance, he seemed to know what to do. Whenever I gasped or twitched, he would chuckle and repeat whatever he'd just done, knowing that it was a turn-on.

Finally, after what was probably half an hour, we just stopped. Scott spoke first. "I'll make a note of what you liked. I'd assumed you weren't going to be as into that as you were." he teased.

"I'm still human." I replied playfully. "Next time, don't be do damn shy. If that was about what nearly happened to me...well, I'm getting over it. And I feel safe around you. So if you do...you know...want me to wear less...as long as you don't push me too far too soon, I could let that happen. I suppose...you kind of are the only guy here who hasn't seen me less than fully-dressed."

Scott's blue eyes went a bit stormy for a moment, but they changed back quickly enough. "Was that an invitation, sweetheart?" His eyes became interested, as if he was planning something.

I giggled. "As long as it's not redeemed now, yes."

After a couple of hours, Scott took me home, again, via motorbike. "So what am I going to tell my parents?" I asked. "You will come see me again, right?"

Scott laughed. "Why are you sounding so unsure about that, sweetheart? I like you too much to just let go of you. September's coming, right? When you start there, just tell your mom that you're hanging out with someone from your new school. For the rest of the summer, tell your parents that you're out with that friend from Toronto I saw you out with a couple of times – let her know so she'll cover for you." He chuckled at my face. "Don't give me that expression, sweetheart, you should've known that I've been watching you. I'm the one who finds secrets out, remember? I'm good at sneaking around places undetected." He grinned again. "And if your parents are out and you're staying in, you better stay in your bedroom, cause I'm thinking your room might be a good place for us to..._hang out._"

I understood the subtext instantly, and laughed at him. "Seriously, do you think about anything else?"

Scott answered by kissing me on the lips. "I figured that would make you quit teasing me." he smirked. "You know that you think about it as much as I do. Now go in, and try not to miss me too much." He zoomed off, and I was left staring after him.

For a first date, that was pretty unorthodox, but hey, I kind of liked that. I'd always wanted my first date to be something more romantic than visiting my date's housemates and then having a makeout session with him...but to be honest, it had been so enjoyable that I didn't mind. And the gang itself felt kind of...like a group I could settle with. If they weren't criminals, that is.

**Hope you liked this chapter! I tried hard with it.**


	14. Chapter 14: How Did He Get In?

**Let's keep going! Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132 (I'm not comfortable with writing anything closer to M – I've only ever written one lemon...which was promptly deleted. I should explain here that I'm not in school any more – I'm in my third year of university).**

For the rest of the summer, I met up with Scott frequently. Sometimes he took me back to the gang's hideout, but other times, he had somehow required a few dollars and took me out. Of course, the places were really cheapskate, but I knew that. After our first time "out", I insisted on doing the paying, since I was the one with the bank account.

My parents were more willing to leave me home alone as August began, and my sixteenth birthday came and went. The second Tuesday of August, they were starting evening classes in...I don't even know what. All they said was that it was a time for them to do something together.

I was expecting the night to be boring, and I was lying on my bed, reading, when a voice floated in through the open window. "Hey, you mind giving me a hand there, sweetheart? Climbing up here wasn't exactly easy."

I looked up at the window. "Scott!" I immediately helped him in, before sitting back on my bed. "What are you doing here?"

"I saw your parents' car moving out and figured home alone wouldn't be as fun as the movie." He paused and saw me looking blank. "I thought I was the one who grew up cut off from the modern world. _Home Alone, _the movie about that kid who gets left at home while his family goes on vacation and has to deal with a couple of dumb burglars? Have you seriously never seen it?"

I shook my head. "No, I haven't. Is one of the burglars your role, then?" I teased.

Scott took one step closer to me, before joining me on my bed. "Nah, I think I'll leave the loot here. As long as I get to borrow her whenever I can."

To be honest, that felt more like an insult then intended, but I played it off quickly, slapping him on the arm playfully. "That depends...are you going to treat her with more respect than calling her loot?" I laughed suddenly. "After all, that's not what you called me when you actually did take me away."

"I miss that." Scott admitted. "I liked seeing you every day. It was hard enough to watch Courtney, my own ex-girlfriend, constantly arguing or flirting with Duncan, but it was bearable. Now that Heather's around, I have to swallow constantly so I don't show how sick I am of her and Alejandro's flirtatious fights. And when they're not doing that, they're acting so sweet to each other, it's even more sickening."

"And you trying to be nice for me is less sickening because..." I teased.

"Oh, that's not what they're doing. It's more like they tell each other that nothing matters more than each other and going on about how much they love being in a relationship."

I couldn't help laughing. "Are you serious? I can't see either of them doing that."

"Guess I'll have to take you over when they're in that mode, then." Scott answered with a sigh. "Whatever. Anyway, how long do we have until I need to be out of here?"

I checked my watch. "I think an hour and a half."

One of Scott's sneakiest smiles spread over his face. "Well, that's enough time."

"Enough time for what?" I asked warily.

The move was sudden. Scott pulled me onto his lap, holding me tightly. "Stop talking." he murmured quietly, before he pulled me into a passionate kiss.

Don't ask me what happened next, because I honestly couldn't remember. One second, I was on his lap, kissing him on the lips, and the next, we were lying on my bed, and my blouse was completely unbuttoned. Yet, I didn't feel scared. I trusted that if I said 'stop', he would. And, this time at least, he didn't push me any further than he had already. And he seemed to have finally started to work out how to use his hands as well as his lips. He wasn't just trying out what he already knew I liked – he was using my newly exposed skin to do more to me.

I couldn't help giggling when he traced my stomach while kissing it. He looked up at me with a dangerous smirk. "Ticklish, are you?"

I knew exactly what he was thinking. "No..." I hissed. Half of the word was a lie, and the other half was pleading with him not to do it.

Scott, of course, didn't listen to my pleas, and started tickling my stomach, and I fought not to start laughing.

"Liar." he whispered teasingly.

"Stop." I choked out, trying to push his hands away.

"You really want me to stop?" Scott asked with a devilish smile. "I don't think I will, though. You haven't laughed enough yet." He adjusted our positions so that he was on top of me, with his legs pinning down my hands, and continued.

"Please..." I managed. "I...I can't stand it..."

"You gotta give in first, sweetheart. Give in and I'll stop. Try not to, and I'll keep it up until you do."

I was torn between giving in and not. Eventually, the part that just wanted him to stop won out, and Scott didn't stop until I'd been laughing painfully for at least ten seconds.

After we finished making out, we just talked. In three weeks, I was starting at my new school – all girls. "I'm not looking forward to it." I admitted. "Having to make a new group of friends...it's scary."

A genuine smile appeared on my boyfriend's face. "You don't have to worry about making new friends. Everyone says that they're worried about that, then things always work out. You start out as the novelty, so everyone wants to talk to you, then you make friends through that. Trust me, I've seen it. And," he added, "You're sixteen this year, right? If you really have problems, you can always join our gang."

I frowned. "Join your gang? Like, committing criminal acts?"

"It's not just that, sweetheart." Scott said. "That part is just to survive. But you can do whatever you want, and no one can stop you. Plus, with us, once we're in – that's it. You're stuck with us as friends, even if you quit." He saw my look of nervousness, and voiced what I was thinking. "And if you think it's not a good idea because of Alejandro, I'd protect you. But besides that, he may be seeing other girls, but he's not dumb enough to try to take a girl while Heather is living under the same roof as her."

I shook my head. "I get what you're saying, but no. No way."

"Sure, sweetheart." Scott said carelessly. "But if you ever change your mind, the offer's open. Gwen's leaving in a week, so there'll be a room free."

The time we could spend was over far too soon. "I want to say goodbye to Gwen." I said as Scott left. "Will you bring me over sometime before she leaves?"

"Sure! I'll see you soon."

And with that, Scott was out, and my parents were back home, not even knowing he'd been there. I hadn't told them anything about having a boyfriend yet. I wondered if I'd ever be able to.

**Yep, Brooklyn's better at lying than she used to be. Please review!**


	15. Chapter 15: What're My Classmates Like?

**Uh-huh, it's time to continue. And BTW, watch out for more non-cameo TD characters turning up. Thanks for your review, Ali6132 (college is pretty awesome – people are way nicer than they are in school, and the tutors are mostly on a more equal level with the students, except for a certain Media Studies lecturer who found it necessary to tell off a student for leaving their phone on for a full minute when no other lecturer would take more than ten seconds) and Sideshow Cellophane 26.**

As it was, I only got to see Gwen briefly to say goodbye. When Scott did bring me over, she was clearly immersed in writing or drawing something and didn't want to be disturbed, so it wasn't a long goodbye or anything. I was pretty happy for her, actually. I knew that she didn't really fit into the group, mainly because she wasn't the criminal type (much more serious but not too driven, intelligent, mature) and had the smarts to get further than anyone else (Courtney could probably do something with her life, but I got the feeling she was too scared of failing to try – and although Alejandro seemed to have just about everything there for a successful life, I guessed that he just didn't want to do anything else).

On that visit, Scott didn't mention the offer of joining again, but I couldn't get it out of my head. I didn't see that much of everyone else, but from what they did see, I kind of couldn't help enjoying. I did end up seeing Alejandro and Heather in their most fluffy mood, since they were in one of their rooms, cuddled up and staring into each other's eyes like they were hypnotizing each other. Even though Scott actually opened the door audibly, it took them a good few seconds to look up. But when they did...

Heather shot a death glare at Scott, and then saw me hovering behind. "Ugh, get out of here, you creep!" she snapped. "And that goes for your girlfriend, too!"

"Heather," began Alejandro, putting a hand on her shoulder, "There's no reason why anyone shouldn't see two people showing affectio-"

"Shut up." Heather snapped at him, before turning back to the door. "Didn't you get it the first time? Get out!"

I couldn't help chuckling myself as we left the room. "I never thought I'd see it!" I grinned. "I thought Heather was an ice queen, but seeing the way she was looking at him...wow."

All too soon, school began, and on a too-warm day in early fall, I was sitting in my homeroom, next to a quiet blonde in a cheerleaders' outfit (we didn't have to wear school uniform). When she looked up and caught me staring at her, she instantly dropped her gaze again.

"Um," I said nervously, "Are you okay?"

The blonde looked up again. "Oh. Yeah. I guess." she muttered. She made eye contact for the first time, her blue-green eyes meeting my green. "Are you new here?"

I nodded. "My name's Brooklyn." I smiled at her tentatively.

It seemed to work. The girl smiled back at me. "My name's Sammy, not Sa-" she cut herself off. "Sammy." she corrected herself again. "Sorry. Some of the kids here don't always call me by my real name, so I got into the habit of introducing myself and correcting them on my name after my sister indroduces me by my...nickname, I guess."

I shrugged. "Well, if you want me to call you Sammy, I will. So..." I paused. All the other girls in the room were talking to someone else. "Where are your friends?"

Sammy shrugged back. "There's Jasmine, but she's in a different homeroom this semester." She blushed. "I don't have a lot of friends. I guess you could say I'm like the new girl in this case."

I couldn't help smiling a little bit. "Would that mean...can I be friends with you?"

Sammy's eyes widened. "You want to be friends with me?"

That was how I made my first friend at my new school. Sammy wasn't someone I would've given a second glance to if I'd been at my old school, but she was kind and soft-spoken and very loyal. She introduced me to her friend Jasmine during break, an unusually tall, confident girl who was obviously an immigrant from Australia – I could tell she was Aborigine, and her accent was really strong. She was very friendly, though, if a little intimidating – she was head and shoulders above both Sammy and I, and had a pretty outgoing personality.

For the first week, I was pretty quiet around the girls, but then I began loosening up, especially as the girls opened up to me. Sammy told me about how her twin sister Amy (who was in our homeroom) treated her like a slave at home and how she never had a friend until she met Jasmine in freshman year. Jasmine mentioned how she had a boyfriend who was convinced that zombies were real, and that even though he was better than he used to be, it sometimes made getting to his front door difficult. "But then, I guess no one's perfect." she laughed.

After hearing that, I felt comfortable enough with them to tell them about Scott and the whole experience. I left out the incident involving Alejandro, of course, but I did tell them the main frame and where I was now. Both girls looked more and more shocked as I continued on.

"So...are you still seeing him?" Sammy asked shyly. "After everything?"

I nodded. "As far as the whole ransom thing goes, it's all over. Sometimes he brings me over to where they live, and everything's the same. Duncan teased me a bit about returning to the scene of the crime the first time, but now he basically takes no notice. Courtney just blanks me, and I try to stay away from Alejandro. It's made easier by the fact that he's more interested in his girlfriend then looking at me. He'll just greet me and that's it. And Gwen left, since she applied to some art school."

Jasmine raised an eyebrow. "Wow. That's one crazy story, but I kind of get it. So, what's this Scott guy like?"

"To be honest, he's...well, he started off really awkward, but he's sort of getting what to do in a relationship now." I said. "He hasn't ever tried to push me too far, and once he knows what he's doing, we have the best time together."

Sammy gave a sigh at that moment, looking forlorn. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing." Sammy mumbled. "I kind of...I listen to you guys, and I think about how I'm never going to have a boyfriend. Whenever I go out and get talking to someone who seems to like me, Amy _always _comes out of nowhere and steals them."

"I've seen it." Jasmine confirmed. "Amy takes as much attention as possible. I mean, just look at her now." She pointed across the space. Amy, who looked just like Sammy except for the mole on her cheek, was laughing with several other girls, who all seemed to be great friends with her. I'd never liked Amy, because she stole all of Sammy's ideas and kept calling her names. It was bad enough that everyone except Jasmine and I had taken up the name "Samey" for her, but I'd heard Amy calling her "Spare me" or something like that – even worse. And Sammy didn't usually say anything to her. Even so, I'd very nearly mistaken Amy for Sammy once or twice, because they dressed alike.

"But," added Jasmine, "I keep saying that we just have to find a time to go out when Amy can't ruin things. And if she comes out again, just to stand up to her and don't let her take the guy's attention."

"I don't think it's possible." Sammy murmured.

I gave a sigh. "If there's anything the ransom taught me, it's that something like finding a perfectly normal likeable guy that'll prefer you over your sister will be easy."

"But who would prefer me?" Sammy said softly. "Everyone likes her best. She's the pretty one."

Jasmine gave an exasperated sigh. "Sammy, I've been telling you for years that you two are identical! You're just as pretty as she is! All you have to do is just dress differently from her to become the 'pretty' one!"

I surveyed Sammy, wondering what kind of clothes she would look good in, that would divide her from Amy. Finally, I smiled. "You know what, Sammy?" I said. "We should totally go shopping. You keep wearing the same things as Amy, and you need a different wardrobe – something that says 'Sammy'. Right now, it just says 'Amy's twin', and we all know that you're a lot more than that."

Yeah, my first couple of weeks at school were off to a good start. I made two friends, who were both friendly and trustworthy (and Sammy was the first person I'd met who was even shyer than I was with new people), and I was keeping up with the work.

I didn't see Scott for those two weeks, though. I wondered where he had gone.

**Kind of a breather chapter. Just so you know, my favourite PI character is Jasmine. My least favourite is Amy. Sammy is fourth on the list, with Scarlett second and Shawn third. Anyway, please review, and tell me who your favourite PI character is!**


	16. Chapter 16: What Do I Tell People?

**Let's continue! Again, spot the TD cameo!**

I didn't have to worry. After my second week at school, I followed through on my promise to take Sammy shopping. Jasmine was busy with something, but she admitted that fashion wasn't really her forte anyway (her usual outfit consisted of a khaki jacket and matching shorts – they suited her, but they weren't fashionable).

It was easy to find things for Sammy. If we were seasons for fashion, I would be spring (greens and pinks suit my hair and eyes) and Sammy would be summer (blue accentuates her eyes and hair). Still, her sense of style was a bit more feminine than mine. I didn't like dresses much (this didn't extend to skirts, I love wearing them), but Sammy found several that made her look amazing. I _did_ convince her to buy skinny jeans and a T-shirt, too. Well, okay, I wanted her to get _a _T-shirt, but I swear, it was not my idea to buy the one with the Batman logoon it.

"I don't care if people tease me." she said defiantly. "Jasmine always says I should stand up for myself more. Wearing this T-shirt is showing I don't care what people think. And the best thing about these clothes are – Amy would never want to wear any of them, so she won't steal them."

Sammy wore one of her dresses the next Monday, and everyone immediately noticed how much better she looked. Amy was furious that her sister was getting so much attention.

But in my opinion, that wasn't the surprise that overtook the day. At the end, just as I was walking out with my two friends, I saw the motorbike parked next to the gates, and the guy leaning against the gate casually.  
I nudged Sammy and Jasmine and pointed him out. Other girls were staring, too, but his eyes were scanning the crowds.

I walked right up to Scott and pecked him on the cheek before he even realized I was there. Before I could react, he smirked and wrapped a tight arm around me. "Getting sneaky, sweetheart?" he teased. "You better watch out – that's _my _job." He glanced up to see my friends. "And you guys are..."

Jasmine spoke up first. "Hi, I'm Jasmine. I'm guessing you're Scott. Brooklyn's been telling us about you." She was still at least a head taller than Scott, and he looked a little freaked out.

Sammy was looking a little scared, so I introduced her to Scott myself. Finally, I turned to him. "And anyway, where were you? I thought moving back here meant I'd see you more!"

"I figured you might want some time to get used to school." Scott said carelessly. "I know you get tons of homework. But I figured I could meet you from school today."

I didn't miss a beat, turning to my friends. "Sammy, can I text to my mom that I'm at your house?" I asked. "Tell her we're doing homework together or something."

Sammy nodded wordlessly. Both my friends watched as I jumped on the back of Scott's motorbike and we zoomed off.

It wasn't anything special. We just bought doughnuts (chocolate iced custard filled for me and maple iced glazed for Scott) and mochas at Krispy Kreme and talked. Then we went back to the hideout (we didn't see anyone in the main room) and made out. Then Scott took me home.

One look at my mom's face and I knew I was in trouble. I was guessing somehow she'd found out I wasn't with Sammy. But I couldn't say that. "Uh, hey, Mom. What's wrong?" I asked nervously.

"Where. Were. You?" she demanded. I knew that it was serious, when she paused between words like that. One of the other girls at our school did it sometimes (I didn't know her name, but she had red hair and glasses), and it meant the same thing in both cases – the speaker was really, really pissed off.

"What happened?" was all I asked.

"I called your cellphone five minutes ago, to ask you to get home before dark, but you didn't reply." (Must've been the fact that I could only hear the air rushing past me on a motorcycle). "So I called Sammy's landline, and her sister answered. She said you hadn't been there at all." (Thanks a ton, Amy.) "So where were you if you weren't with Sammy? And why did you lie?"

I lowered my head, avoiding her gaze. I hated being told off, and I had to make up a lie...fast. "I met a boy over the holidays." I mumbled, eyes still downcast. "When I was with one of my friends. We hit it off and we've been meeting several times since. He met me after school today. I figured saying I was with Sammy would be more simple."

"And why did you not say anything about him when you first met him?" Mom demanded.

"I don't know." I muttered. "I guess I thought you wouldn't let me out if you didn't know who I was with."

"And you didn't think it would be a good idea to ask him to meet us?" But I could tell the worst was over. Mom knew I'd be worried about letting a boyfriend meet the parents.

There was a pause.

Then Mom spoke in a normal tone. "What's his name?" she asked.

"Scott." I told her, this time sticking to the truth.

"How old is he?"

"Um...eighteen, I think." I said. "You're not going to say he's too old for me, are you?"

"I think I could trust you to make your own decisions on that count, Brooklyn." She asked me a few more questions. Then she grounded me for the next week, then told me that it was important that she met Scott sometime within the next month.

Oh well. Win some, lose some. At least she hadn't told me I had to stop seeing him immediately. Was I glad I hadn't described Scott to the cops or mentioned anyone's names – Mom would never have let me see him again in a million years!

Then, to add insult to injury, when I got to school the next day, Amy approached me, her eyes bright with malice. "So where were you last night?" she asked. "Samey wouldn't tell me anything."

"_Sammy _knows how to keep a secret." I said, emphasizing my friend's name to make a point. "You, on the other hand...well, I trust you about as far as I could throw my boyfriend's motorcycle. Which I can't even push."

Amy scowled for a moment, and then her face lit up. "Your boyfriend! That's it, isn't it? You say you're with your friends because you know your parents wouldn't approve!" Her smile was twisted with cruel triumph. "So he's a troublemaker, right? How many tattooes? One hundred or more? And how many times has he hurt you, yet you come crawling back?"

I was about to lose my temper now. "My boyfriend is a perfectly nice person." I hissed...okay, that was a lie, but he was nice to me. My next words were true. "He doesn't have any tattooes anyway, and has never once hurt me...you know, since that one tickle fight doesn't count. And also, I've met his friends dozens of times."

I almost felt sorry for Amy. I'd told her exactly what she'd asked to hear, and she didn't get what she wanted.

Understandably, my friends commented on Scott, too. "I thought he was going to be more scary." Sammy admitted. "You know, a gang member. But he was kind of...normal."

"I could tell he's not the nicest guy on the planet," Jasmine admitted, "But it's obvious that he really likes you."

I grinned. "Speaking of which, Jazz, you have to introduce your boyfriend to me some time. And Sammy, if you really want to see 'gang member' personified, you'd have to meet Duncan. His appearance screams 'law-breaker' and as far as I know, he's the only one with a criminal record."

Saying that reminded me that I was on house arrest for the week. Oh well.

**I know I crammed a bit too much into that chapter, but I needed to for levelling purposes. Let's see what happens next.**

**Okay, why am I bothering to write this, if no one reviews?**


	17. Chapter 17: Can I Keep Seeing Him?

**Hope you like this one! Thank you for reviewing, Sideshow Cellophane 26 and Ali6132 (Amy thinks that anyone who would willingly make friends with her sister is desperate for emotional attention, so she makes the assumption that if Brooklyn is dating someone her parents wouldn't approve of, he's the worst kind of boy). To everyone who read, sorry for being a little mean last chapter – I'd just been travelling in the rain with public transport for three hours, so when I got home, I was cold, wet, and hungry.**

Scott did hang around after school to pick me up on the Thursday, but I had to tell him I couldn't go with him. "Mom grounded me for the next week because she found out I wasn't at Sammy's on Monday. I had to tell her that I met you in the holidays and we've been dating since. Being grounded also means I'm not supposed to talk to you. I mean, at all. If I break that rule, I'll probably be grounded for a month, and she and Dad will probably start coming to the school gates to make sure I don't go anywhere."

Scott shrugged. "Well, hop on anyway. I'll give you a ride home, at least."

I gave a sigh, but smiled. I never usually broke the rules, but there was something thrilling about doing it once in a while. I jumped on, wrapping my arms around Scott, and we zoomed off. "Okay. Anyway, how are you at, like...meeting the parents? My mom says I have to bring you over within the next month."

I knew Scott was a bit awkward socially. "I've never really dated seriously before." he murmured. "Courtney was three days and that was it. What am I supposed to say? It's hard enough trying to figure out how to be an okay boyfriend."

As he slowed down on the bike, cruising down my street, I spoke again. "Well, if I know my parents, they'll want to see me dating a well-mannered, clean-cut natural friendly guy. My advice is to be generally polite, be nice, and if you say anything about me, talk about my personality only."

Scott stopped outside my house and let me get off the bike. "That's all? I can deal with that, sweetheart." he said, seemingly cool with all my instructions. "Next Tuesday works, right? I'll be the perfect boyfriend in your parents' eyes." He leant in and kissed me. "Don't look now, but I think we're being watched from the window." he whispered. "Guess you better go. Love ya, sweetheart."

At first Mom thought I'd breached the whole "grounded" thing, until I explained that Scott had just shown up and when I told him I was grounded, offered to bring me home. "I've told him that I'm not allowed to hang out with him until the end of next Monday."

"What were you two talking about?" she asked (That's my mom, always asking irrelevant questions that I might not want to answer).

"I told him you wanted to meet him." I said simply. "I think he's going to pick me up and come back here Tuesday."

Mom nodded. "Right. "

"You won't interrogate him too much, right?" I said pleadingly. "This is the first time he or I have dated seriously, and I think he's pretty nervous about it."

I didn't think Mom took that concern too seriously, and I later on told my friends the same thing.

"Just be glad he doesn't look stereotypically dangerous." Jasmine advised. "I definitely didn't get a good feeling around him, but as long as he doesn't act dangerous, your parents'll have no real reason to stop you from seeing him. Like I said, I know I don't like him, but I can tell how much he really wants to be with you."

I smiled weakly. "It's true he doesn't look like a gang member. Remember what I was saying about Duncan, the leader? Green mohawk, tons of piercings, criminal record...but then, he _does _have a girlfriend."

"Hey," Sammy's soft voice rang out. "You talk about these people as if they're, like, friends. We are talking about the same people who used you as ransom, right?"

I paused, thinking about it. "True, Sammy. That _is _kind of weird. I mean, with Scott, he actually once tried to let me escape – the only reason I didn't was because I got as far as Burger King, and then Courtney found me. And Gwen kept telling me to try to deal with things and that I'd be home soon."

"You said Alejandro was like that too, right?" Sammy added, remembering me saying that.

"I don't want to talk about it." I responded without even thinking about it. "Let's just say that Alejandro is not what he seems most of the time. And if what I was told was right, he regularly cheats on his girlfriend whom he actually cares about. Scott told me he sweet-talks tonnes of girls into bed."

My friends gasped.

There was a pause. "Anyway," I said, picking up, "You're right, Sammy. It is kind of weird that these people started off as captors, yet I kind of liked them. Enough to let them free with the four hundred grand."

Jasmine spoke up, her usual confident tone gone. "Um, Brooklyn. Don't take this the wrong way or anything, but...I think you might have Stockholm Syndrome."

I raised my eyebrow. "Remind me what that is." Sammy was looking confused too.

"Stockholm Syndrome is a condition in which a captured forms some kind of sympathetic bond with the captor." Jasmine explained. "You can deny it if you want, but there's a lot of signs. And it would be because, from what you've told us, they weren't really tough on you."

I frowned. Jasmine read my expression. "I might be wrong," she said, "But even if I'm right, I can't change your opinion. Whatever you do think, what you feel is real, I can see that."

"And besides," Sammy added, "I think everyone in love is a little bit crazy."

I raised an eyebrow. "You're right that I'm going to deny it, Jasmine. It sounds pretty legit, but I don't think that's it. I don't have any sympathy towards Courtney. And I'm pretty much neutral towards Duncan. It's really Gwen and Scott I like. But I guess what I feel is...they needed the money, and they couldn't see another way to get it. That's what Gwen told me, anyway. And now she's at art school – that's what she spent her share on."

Tuesday drew closer and closer. And soon, it was the day.

Scott waited outside school for me, and I immediately ran up to him. He kissed me briefly – probably because he'd never actually kissed me with strangers watching before (the only people who'd ever seen us actually kiss were some of the gang members occasionally). Then we were heading towards my home.

Finally, we drew up outside. Scott slung an arm across my shoulders as we walked up. "Sweetheart, you're shaking." he noticed. "Don't stress so much. I've been finding out everything I can about meeting the parents. Even Courtney told me to imply that I'm highly educated and have a ton of respect for elders."

I looked at him. "Well, she's right." He was wearing something I'd never seen before over his shirt. "By the way, where'd you get the leather jacket?"

Scott looked a bit unsure of himself. "Part of my share of the ransom money." he mumbled. "Same as the motorbike and stuff. I know it's kind of important to have motorbike gear but I don't usually bother wearing it."

I frowned. "So...if I'm with you, should I be buying leather too? I should've been wearing motorbike gear for riding on your bike so frequently."

"Well..." Scott had a creeper smile. "I know I wouldn't mind seeing you in all leather..."

I slapped his arm playfully. "Okay, enough with that kind of comment. Don't make one in front of my parents, 'kay?"

I guess I could say the meeting went well. Scott left his arm around my shoulders the whole time, and my mom and dad didn't comment. He didn't say much except for answering questions...sometimes with edited answers. He even decided to leave out that I hung out with his "gang", since we both knew that it wasn't done for a schoolgirl to hang out with a bunch of older teens..that would just seem suspicious.

It was only after he left that I found out what my parents really thought.

"He's obviously very taken with you." Mom said. "And he seems nice enough."

"I don't know." Dad mused. "There's something about him...I feel like there's something that just doesn't seem right."

What was up with everyone saying that? Everyone seemed to be able to tell that he was either a criminal or just plain sneaky.

I gave a sigh. "My friends briefly met him, and Jasmine said the same thing. He's always been perfectly nice to me, though. And he really does respect me."

Mom looked at me for a long time. Then she said "All right, Brooklyn, you're clear to keep seeing him, as long as you tell me truthfully where you are next time."

**Yes! Brooklyn can keep seeing Scott. Good for her! Please review.**


	18. Chapter 18: Should I Do This?

**OK, let's keep going! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, Ali6132 (Scotlyn? Nice!) and Sideshow Cellophane 26.**

I did get myself leather gear for the motorbike by the end of the week – just a jacket and some pants. I'd bring the jacket anywhere, just in case, but only wear the pants if I knew in advance about being on Scott's motorcycle.

I wasn't sure if it was good or bad that the outfit was tight. When I wore it on the Friday at school when I knew Scott was going to pick me up after, Jasmine teased me a bit. "Those are so snug they're like a snakeskin!" she joked.

I should probably have expected Scott's reaction. When I walked out of school in full leather, he didn't even try to hide the fact that he was enjoying the view. I immediately blushed and he chuckled.

"What's with that look, sweetheart?" he teased. "Not that you don't look adorable when you blush. Especially in that outfit." he winked. "Anyway, hop on." And as usual, I jumped on his motorcycle, and we were soon at the hideout.

We would've gone straight to the bedroom, but everyone was in the common area. Alejandro looked up, but seemed to lose interest pretty quickly. Duncan, I could tell, was staring at me for the same reason Scott had. At least, this was cut short when Courtney shot a ferocious glare at him, which made Heather smirk.

"I knew it!" she gloated. "Courtney, seriously, if you can't take guys staring at a girl, just do the smart thing and cut yourself loose before you guys do something really serious." Courtney shot a death glare at her, and then shot one at me too.

But Courtney's death glares didn't stop Duncan from commenting "So you finally decided to get smart about the motorbike? Smart move, Brooklyn. You're getting more like one of us."

Alejandro spoke up, in his most cordial of tones. "That's true. I know I don't speak to you often, but there's most definitely something different that you wear well."

Heather shot him a glare that was too token to be really threatening and shrugged. "What next? Are you going to ask her to join?"

Scott pulled me close to him. "If she wanted to be in, she's in, right? She's sixteen – that's the age. The offer's open."

Courtney looked furious, but Duncan eyed me. "Maybe." Finally, he addressed me again. "Brooklyn, have you actually thought about joining?"

I shook my head. "It was brought up a oouple of months ago, but I didn't think about it seriously."

"Do you _want_ to join?"

I wasn't sure how to answer that. I had a pretty picture perfect life at the moment. I didn't want to leave it. Yet the sort of gritty glamour of a life of crime was tempting. "I'm torn." I admitted.

Courtney finally spoke up. "I can't believe you're taking the idea of her joining us so seriously! She's not strong, or smart, and she's in no way useful except as a toy!"

"I must disagree with you on that point, Courtney." Alejandro interjected. "Her innocence could be greatly useful to us. Don't forget, a few of our more risky...activities have nearly ended badly. They would have been much more beneficial if we had a decoy. Brooklyn's pretty, well-kept and polite – she'd be perfect."

Heather surveyed me. "Yeah. True. Why not let her try out a few times and then decide if we could leave the offer open for her."

Duncan nodded. "Sounds like a good plan, Heather. Brooklyn, are you up for it? Offer of trying out only open now."

"Though the invitaton to join will be open until you're ready." Scott added quickly.

In retrospect, when I looked back on my decision, years later, I didn't regret it one bit. Sure, a lot of consequences came of my choice, but if I hadn't made that choice, I don't know what would've happened. Maybe nothing, maybe a lot.

I looked the leader of the gang dead in the eye and said "I'll do it."

Duncan nodded, his face still serious. "A couple of things. On terms of this, what we say goes. You already know that I give the orders around here, but as you're not one of us yet, you listen to all of us. Got that?"

I nodded.

"And you don't have to get warning of when we want you. When we call, you run, no matter when. And most likely you're going to have to be out during the night at some point."

That was a little more anxiety-inducing, but I nodded again. I couldn't go back on it with everyone watching. Especially not with Courtney there. She had a look of smugness, like she was sure I'd back down. When I nodded for the second time, her face became sour, and I knew she had hoped I'd decide that was too much. She looked at me with undisguised disdain, and I suddenly realized that...she didn't frighten me any more. I'd spent enough time around her to know that she really wasn't as threatening as she wanted to appear.

I let my eyes flicker towards Scott for a moment. Then I got up the courage, and threw a cheeky smile in Courtney's direction. Her expression became even more angry, looking like she wanted to kill me.

I think Scott sensed that she was angrier, because he took my hand firmly and led me back to his room. And sure enough, when we were alone, he said "Sorry about that sudden dragging you off, sweetheart, but Courtney was in her killing-spree mood, and she can do some serious damage to whoever made her angry."

"Guess I shouldn't have looked at her." I murmured.

"Hey, I liked that." Scott told me. "It's like you were standing up to her. And I know from the comments on your old school file that you doing that is rare. And Heather saw you doing that...I think she respects you a little bit now."

I grinned slyly. "Really? That's pretty cool. Anyway, forget them for now. What say we do something fun?"

Scott returned my smile. "Given that 'fun' means I get to take control, sure."

"Be my guest."

Scott chuckled. "In five seconds, you're gonna wish you hadn't said that." And then he moved.

He pretty much knocked me onto his bed, pinning me lying there on my back.

"But," Scott added more seductively, "You're gonna go back on that wish soon enough..."

And I did.

**Now things are really being set in motion! Please review.**


	19. Chapter 19: Can We Do It?

**Let's keep going. By the way, Brooklyn's pyjamas are a reference to real ones I bought – a red lacy singlet and black leggings with Elmo on the kneecaps. And hey, look, a Shawn cameo! I ADORE Shawn – he's in my top 20 contestants!**

**Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, Sideshow Cellophane 26 and Ali6132 (Happy belated birthday).**

I didn't tell Jasmine or Sammy about the offer to join the gang. I knew it would be further evidence to Jasmine that I had Stockholm Syndrome and Sammy was already weirded out enough by the fact that I was on semi-friendly terms with a street gang. I didn't think they'd ditch me – but there were just some things I couldn't share with anyone, not even my friends.

On that note, I did talk Jasmine into letting me meet her boyfriend Shawn, albeit briefly. They were seeing each other Monday night for some reason, and she introduced me (Sammy had met him once or twice already, but she still hung around).

I surveyed the guy. Like just about everyone else, he was at least a head shorter than Jasmine, and he looked a little weird with his toque, longish scruffy hair and worn-looking clothes. But he seemed nice enough. He didn't say much and his eyes flickered around a lot as if he was scared of something, but Jasmine definitely noticed his tic and didn't comment, so I assumed that was normal. Again, I only briefly got to meet him, but apart from his flickering eyes and not saying much, he seemed like a pretty good guy, and it was obvious he was really into Jasmine. When they walked off together, it looked a little strange, tall Jasmine and average-sized Shawn, but I could see it.

Beside me, Sammy gave a sigh. "I always feel kind of jealous." she confided. "I hate it that my relationship count is at zero. Amy's gone out with tons of boys, and she always makes sure to tell me about her latest date in detail. She only does it to rub in how much better she is."

"Going out with loads of boys doesn't make it better. How many boys has she actually done anything with?"

"None." Sammy replied. "She's never gone further than kissing, then she dumps them. Half the time, she just goes out with them once, so she can tell me that she can get any guy."

"In spite of not being one physically, that is definitely the mark of a slut." I said. "It just proves why you stay single – who'd want to be like that? Once we find someone that you can ask out, prove that you're better at relationships than Amy by staying with him if things work out."

Sammy smiled. "That works for me!" She looked up at me, suddenly. "Um, Brooklyn?" she said. "You know...your boyfriend? Do you think he might know anyone who might...you know...like me?"

I didn't actually know if Scott had any guy friends outside the gang. "I'll ask." I told her. "But don't get your hopes up. The only guys that I know for sure he knows are taken. Duncan's got Courtney, and Alejandro's got Heather and probably several others that she doesn't know of."

Sammy looked uneasy when I said that. "So...that guy...do you think if he saw me, I'd be-"

"It's a downside of being pretty." I told her. "That's why you can't be too careful. My advice is, if anyone that matches that description – you know, muscles, dark skin, green eyes – if they come up to you and are really charming and nice, just don't look at their eyes, make an excuse and run."

"You know what?" Sammy abruptly said. "You talk about this gang so much, I feel like I know them already. They sound...kind of fun."

I couldn't help letting out a little gasp. "Sammy...you aren't honestly saying what I think you're saying?"

"What? You're shocked that I'd be interested to actually meet them?" Sammy said. "Just because I'm quiet and don't have many friends doesn't mean I don't sometimes like danger. Your Scott doesn't seem that dangerous. How bad could the rest of them be?"

I shook my head. "First off, no way would they agree to it – I'd probably have to ask Duncan and there's no way he'd say it was okay. Second, if Heather isn't around, I can guarantee that Alejandro is going to try it on with you. You do NOT want to have that happen. Third, Scott's trying to recruit me and I ended up going along with it – bringing a friend would get me killed, probably. Courtney would probably be happy to tear me apart."

Sammy, in spite of herself, shivered. "Okay, you make some good points. Courtney does sound scary."

But then again, Sammy did end up meeting a few of the gang members, and completely accidentally.

My favourite thing to do with my friends was always sleepovers. I didn't know why – just having a night in with a movie, popcorn, ice cream and just hanging out always appealed to me more than clubbing and flirting with boys. So a week later when Sammy mentioned that Amy had a date Saturday night, and she'd make sure that when she got back, she'd give Sammy a detailed description of how things went (which was just an elaboration of "I was on a date and you weren't"), even waking her up if she was asleep by that time, I suggested a sleepover straight off, inviting both her and Jasmine. However, Jasmine always seemed to be doing something on Saturdays, so she declined (although all three of us hung out together on Sunday). So it was just two of us, but we did the usual thing – rented an R-16 horror movie, ended up making spiders instead of sundaes (I made mine with Sprite and Sammy used wild cherry Pepsi), and sprinkled our favourite flavours on the popcorn (salt for me and icing sugar for Sammy) – and of course, compared pyjamas.

"I can't believe you tried to talk me out of getting a Batman T-shirt when you have pyjama pants with Elmo on them!" Sammy exclaimed.

"And I can't believe you got a Batman T-shirt when your nightdress looks more like a balldress!" I teased.

But then, we finally got to sleep at midnight. Only five minutes seemed to have passed when I heard my locked window sliding open, but the clock said it was half past two AM.

"What's going on?" I heard Sammy whisper.

The moonlight shone in as a curtain was drawn away and a harsh whisper came through. "Brooklyn, out here! Now!"

I was awake instantly. I looked back at the gang leader and said "Let me out of the window first! And why did you bother to come?"

"Because," Duncan said impatiently, "I was closest to the window when we pulled up here. And if I let Scott do it, I think he'd just make out with you all night instead of bringing you with us.

"What's happening?" Sammy asked again, pulling up her sleep mask and joining me at the window. When she saw that I wasn't alone, she gave a squeal and jumped back.

"Don't freak." I told my friend. "Just...I'll explain it later. Just cover for me if I'm not back, okay?"

"Where are you going?" Sammy asked. "Can...can I come?"

I looked at Duncan for an answer. He sighed. "Is she going to talk?"

"I've already told her what happened last spring." I answered.

"Fine, bring her with. But if she causes you to mess up and end up in juvie, that's your problem. Lemme tell you, you think we're tough, you should meet some of the chicks in there."

I climbed out of the window and onto the ground. Sammy followed cautiously while I whispered my explanation. And her reaction was...unexpected. I should've seen it coming, maybe, but Sammy really had a rebellious streak and didn't mind sneaking out at night to commit a small-time high.

I slid into the van. As usual, Courtney was in the passengers' seat, and Alejandro and Heather were arguing about something in whispers in the middle...well, more accurately, Heather was arguing, and Alejandro was constantly answering by flirting. Scott was in the back, and looked none too pleased when he saw Sammy with me.

"She wanted to come with." I explained. "Guess both of us are playing decoy."

Courtney looked at Sammy with the same look she had with me – like Sammy was dust on her sandals or a used tissue. She glared at Duncan. "Why are we bringing someone else?"

"She wanted to come, and I figured, if she gets caught, she gets caught." Duncan told her.

"Her name's Sammy." I added in helpfully.

"I didn't ask you!" Courtney snapped. "Just be quiet!"

I pointed out everyone to Sammy quietly, until Duncan finally pulled up outside a 24-hour convenience store. "Okay, everyone out. Usual stuff. Everyone knows what to do. You two," he turned to us. "You're going in first."

**Brooklyn's first crime! How will she do? Please review if you want to see what comes next!**


	20. Chapter 20: How Did It Go?

**So when we left off, it was time to grab a few necessities from the convenience store...thanks for your great reviews, Starburst278, berkbar740, Elizabeth Life Stone and Ali6132 (love the profile pic).**

**To the other reviewer, I'm not sure why you feel the need to question why there isn't M-rated content in a T-rated story. If you don't like it, don't read it! And if this fic is so bad, why bother reviewing to tell me so?**

Duncan just gave a few orders. "Courtney, drinks. Heather, food. Alejandro, any other necessities. Scott, be ready to drive when we have to go. I've got the rest planned. You two," us again. "You go in, stall the guy at the counter. Make up something, anything. Just keep him busy until you see me signal through the window at the back of the store." He thrust a few coins and a five-dollar bill into my hands. "Spend it if you have to, but only on stuff we might actually need."  
Sammy and I nodded meekly, and went in.

"Sir, " I said sweetly to the bored-looking man behind the counter, "Excuse me, but my friend and I want to buy chocolate bars, but we're a little unsure of what to choose. What would you recommend?"

My trick stalled the guy for about two minutes, and Sammy stalled him for another three by flirting with him. Then I saw Duncan in the window, I nodded, and Sammy and I made our exit. I gave the money back.

"Impressive." Duncan commented. This time, Scott was driving as he'd said, while he was in the passenger seat. Courtney was sitting in the free middle seat, scowling. "And you didn't spend anything." He looked around at Sammy. "Name again?"

"Uh, Sammy." my blonde friend replied.

"Sammy, you and Brooklyn make a pretty good team." Duncan said. "You ever considered a life of crime?"

Alejandro glanced back at us. "True. You are both skilled as decoys – together, you would be double the asset to our gang that just one of you would be."

"Now wait just a minute!" protested both the girls and Scott.

"We wanted Brooklyn to join because we all know her and we know that she would be a good member." Scott pointed out, parking the car, although we were only halfway back. "But we don't know this girl at all and you tell her she should join?" Duncan started saying something to him as I talked.

"If she's got the skills, why shouldn't she join?" I protested.

"Why should we let just anyone in?" Courtney asked, venom in her words. "We don't just let in any loser." Sammy flinched at her words.  
"Exactly!" Heather added. "You only have a chance because you know us and cause you're Scott's girlfriend. Your best friend doesn't count."

Courtney muttered something I couldn't hear, although I caught Gwen's name being mentioned.

Duncan took the driver's seat again while Scott climbed into the back with Sammy and I. "He wants you up there so if you _do_ want to do this again, you know what happens." he said grudgingly.

Sammy looked at me, and I nodded. She shyly went to the front passenger seat.

"Finally!" Scott muttered. He pulled me close. "Not to be mean, sweetheart, but not being able to hold you on the way there cause of your friend was making me crazy."

"Hey, if you stop me seeing Sammy, or Jasmine for that matter, you die for playing possessive boyfriend." I teased.

Scott chuckled. "I got nothing against her, but if she joins, promise we'll still have tons of alone time. Or at least, time where she won't be all shocked about us. Anyway, nice job with the decoy. Only next time, you'll have to get him away from the counter – I persuaded everyone to go easy on you for the first time. Ditto your friend if she tags along."

"Sammy's tougher than she looks." I told him. "She'd deal. And there's no way she'd keep us apart in any way. She knows enough about us already, and I don't think she'd mind seeing PDAs." And we had a fastforwarded makeout session on my way home.

Sammy talked about nothing else all of the next day. We'd both fallen asleep quickly enough when we got back, but in the morning, she told me her opinions, almost bubbling over with excitement. "That was so cool! I can't believe we helped rob a store, and everyone was so cool about it. Courtney was much less scary than I imagined, and Heather's, like, just like Amy but not so mean. And Alejandro talks much less than I imagined, but he is really really hot. And I think Duncan's really cool. I mean, I know he's totally stereotypical criminal, but I like that. And he said I had potential and complimented me on the flirting I was doing when I had no idea what I was doing, really. I so wanna do this again!" She was positively glowing.

"Slow down!" I laughed. "Sammy..." I paused, "Are you saying you..._like..._Duncan?"

Sammy blushed. "Well...maybe..."

"Don't let on!" I said quickly. "If it gets back to Courtney, she will maim and probably kill you first chance she gets. She's the jealous type – can't stand it if Duncan even looks at another girl. She kept thinking Gwen was trying to steal him, too."

Meanwhile, morality was catching up with me. I was slowly beginning to realize what I'd done. I'd helped in a robbery – and yet, no matter how much I reminded myself that the gang didn't have qualifications and needed the stuff, I couldn't help feeling guilty. I couldn't bring myself to say it to Sammy, though. She was high on the thrill of it, and last night, I'd felt it too. But it left a sour aftertaste.

When we met up with Jasmine late into the morning, Sammy finally shut up about the robbery and we spent the day like anyone else. But I knew she was still thinking about it. When she left to get home, she whispered to me "Next time you see them, tell them I'm interested."

"Wait a second...you want to join?" I asked. "As in, a group who gets by on stealing?"

"A group who held _you _for ransom." Sammy pointed out. "I'm sick of being the shy twin, stuck in her sister's shadow. I want to have fun and to break some of the rules for once. We both know that I don't stand up for myself enough. I'm going to turn that around and prove to Amy and everyone else that I'm not just the younger twin."

I let out a sigh. "Is all of this just about proving a point to Amy? Please don't say that it is-"

"No, it isn't." Sammy confirmed. "I just don't want people to walk all over me all my life. Please, Brooklyn, don't stop me from trying to join."

"All right." I gave in. "I'll tell them you're definitely interested, if they ask. Do you want me to give them your address, too?"

Sammy grinned mischievously. "Sure. Only make sure they know how to tell me apart from Amy. She'd tell the cops on them in a heartbeat if they ended up mistaking her for me."

**Sorry about how short this chapter was! I hope you like the new development.**


	21. Chapter 21: Should She Join Too?

**Okay, another chapter! Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132, berkbar740, Sideshow Cellophane 26 and Elizabeth Life Stone.**

When Scott met me from school that Tuesday, he brought me straight back to the hideout. "Duncan wants to ask something about that friend you have." he said grudgingly.

Sure enough, the rest of the gang was hanging out in the main area. Duncan was on one of the sofas, looking cool and chilled out as always, yet still able to communicate this air that he was the boss. When he saw me, he just said "Brooklyn. Good. Just the kid I wanted to see." I obediently stopped.

"I wanted to ask you a few questions, about your friend that joined us." Duncan explained. "Sammy, was it?"

I nodded. "She says she really had a lot of fun and wants to do it again. And she wanted me to give you her address." I reeled it off, and Duncan took the whole thing seriously and actually wrote it down.

"Oh, and also, she says that if her sister hears about this, she'll turn you in, so you need to remember this. Amy, Sammy's sister, looks almost exactly like her, except for the mole on her cheek, which Sammy does NOT have." I added.

Duncan grinned. "She seems like the exact type of person who we need in this gang. Maybe a little young, but willing and eager to learn. You two'll have to join us on a few more heists – harder ones, but right now, looking good." Courtney shot a glare at him. "Aw, c'mon, Princess. So maybe I flirted with Sammy just a little bit. She's hot, big deal. It's not like I hooked up with her."

"I don't care!" snapped Courtney. "All I care about is that you admitted to flirting with a blonde bimbo of a cheerleader when you're supposed to be dating me."  
I thankfully slipped over to Scott. "Can we go? Take it to your room or something?"

"Good idea." Scott conceded, although he looked like he was enjoying the argument. "I would've stayed and watched," he admitted once we were alone, "If it wasn't for the fact that something better was waiting for me."

This time, when we made out, Scott was a bit more daring than I was used to. In ten minutes, I had nothing but my skirt and panties still on, and my skirt didn't last very long. The last article of clothing I was wearing didn't actually come off, but with the amount of time I let Scott's hand slip under the fabric, it might as well have been.

But after a few minutes of bliss, I suddenly froze. "Stop." I gasped out.

Scott took one look at my face and withdrew his hand instantly. He took me by the shoulders. "Sweetheart, what's wrong? Did I do something?"

"I'm sorry." I whimpered. "It's just.. when you went there, I just remembered...things and I...I couldn't stand it." I was almost in tears. "I truly thought I was over it. But it was like I was back in the room, blindfolded...about to be r – ra..." I couldn't get the word out. "With nothing I could do about it."

Scott pulled me into a hug, stroking my hair and reassuring me. "It's okay, sweetheart. You're safe. I won't do that again unless you think you can handle it. I wouldn't hurt you if I could help it. You know that, don't you?"

I nodded. "I'm sorry, though. I couldn't help it. I guess I cut off your chances to have your own fun, didn't I?"

"I won't lie." Scott said. "I'm disappointed, but I'm not mad at you. I know you couldn't help getting scared." But his blue eyes darkened a little. "I blame Courtney and Alejandro. He didn't have to listen to her, and she shouldn't have asked him to do it, anyway. Seriously, I never called them out on that, but then I guess I was just so happy that things didn't get too far, and besides that, Duncan already called both of them out on that...I don't think Courtney was happy that you told him it was her idea. But maybe I should do something."

"Don't!" I begged. "Courtney hates me enough as it is, and I don't even want to think about what happened. Don't say anything to them, please! And you know that if you do anything to Alejandro, Heather will get involved, and I don't want her to know anything about it."

Scott let a sigh escape. "All right, sweetheart, I won't do anyhing. But we are going to have to work on this at some point. I am not going to let my girlfriend be damaged like this beyond repair."

I managed a smile. "I trust you, Scott. If I ever feel comfortable with letting someone touch...that, it would be you. I thought I'd gotten past that, really. And usually, I feel safe when I'm with you."

We just talked for awhile. "There's something I want to talk about, but you have to promise not to tell anyone, especially not Courtney." I said.

Scott's eyes lit up in interest. "What is it, sweetheart?"

"You probably won't think it's anything huge." I said. "It's just...Sammy told me she kind of likes Duncan..."

"Oh." Scott stopped looking interested. "Yeah. She's not the first. Gwen made it clear she wasn't interested in him, but even she said he was hot. And you should see the way some random girls look at him sometimes." He smirked. "To be honest, though, I think he kind of likes her too. I can tell that he's starting to get fed up with Courtney yelling at him and telling him what to do all the time."

I giggled. "Well, Sammy wouldn't do that. I haven't known her long, but she admitted that she's spent most of her life letting her sister tell her what to do. She's only started standing up to her recently."

Scott grinned. "Wow, I can see why she wants to join now. Everyone who joined has some kind of story about rules or family problems. Like pretty much everyone from Duncan's family is a cop, so he's been a rebel against the law since kindergarten. And once he started dating Courtney, she chose freedom over success – she used to always follow the rules. Alejandro is less about breaking the rules...but I found out he had this older brother who was better than him at everything...so I guess he lost heart and that's why he joined – to be different instead of the best. Even Gwen's had financial issues with her family – she was part of a single-parent family...apparently one reason she joined was so her mom would only have one kid to look after, and she still kept in close touch. If she hadn't been close with Duncan, she probably would've applied for college a year ago. I haven't finished finding out Heather's story, but I know she used to be really unpopular and shunned in middle school, and only became pretty and cold a few years back."

I grinned too. "And you?"

Scott dropped his gaze. "Just got sick of all the regulations." he muttered. "I guess it was partly because of..." he paused.

"You mean Dawn?" I ventured softly.

Scott wouldn't look up, but he answered. "I guess. There was no point following a bunch of stupid little rules if the only person who I cared about would despise me no matter what." Finally, he met my gaze and smiled. "To be honest, I wasn't sure what I was getting into when I asked you out. I'm glad you haven't tried to drag me out of this world."

"Not that I haven't thought about it." I muttered, but then I looked back up. "No, I get why you're in this gang. And I get that it's really what you have to do."

When I got home that night, Sammy called on my mobile. "What's up?" I asked.

"I just got a text!" Sammy said excitedly. "Duncan has my number. He says you told him that I was interested, and wants to speak to me face-to-face, like, tomorrow. So someone in the gang will be waiting outside our school to pick me up."

I still didn't really understand why she was so excited, but I reminded myself, I had to be supportive.

"That's great." I said.

**You can probably guess what I'm setting up here. BTW...some interesting info. I talked to several of my friends about Duncney vs Gwuncan in this fic, just saying "boy stay with girlfriend or get with best friend". Most of them ruled that the boy should date his best friend, but one of my friends said that was too predictable. But...who knows what'll happen with Duncan?**

**Now, this is important, especially for anyone who's into "The Simpsons". I recently uploaded a story there called "The Hick Heartbreakers" featuring a character who only appeared in about three episodes, and an OC called Callie-Jo. I would love some reviews on it. Please, take a look at it?**


	22. Chapter 22: What Will She Think?

**I guess I better continue. Thanks for reviewing, berkbar740, Starburst278,, Ali6132 (I'm thinking Samcan, but that's only because the alternative is Dummy...which one do you think it should be?) and Me (sorry, but I've made my plans).**

As it turned out, Duncan knew who to send to pick up Sammy. When she, Jasmine and I came out, Alejandro was waiting outside. Sammy gave me a nervous look.

"After what you told me, what am I supposed to think?" she ventured.

"That was different." I whispered. "Just make it plain you're not interested. And don't look him in the eyes. With me, Courtney actually asked him. Besides, once you're at the hideout, you'll be okay. Everyone else will be around, and if Heather's there, he won't give you a second glance."

Sammy gave a sigh and approached the gang member.

"What's going on?" Jasmine asked. "You two have been acting really weird recently."

"Don't worry, Jazz, it's nothing really." I said. "Sammy's just doing this rebel thing a lot. I don't know." That was kind of true.

"I get that," Jasmine said, "But who is that guy, anyway, and how does she know him?"

I knew Jasmine well enough to know that she wasn't going to give up on this, and that she could keep secrets. She was really smart, too – I couldn't just make up anything and expect her to swallow it. I just wasn't sure if she would want to keep the same secret Sammy and I shared.

"It's not really my place to explain." I said finally. "You'd have to ask Sammy."

Jasmine narrowed her eyes.

"I'm serious!" I said desperately. "Even if I was going to tell you my part, I'd have to tell you Sammy's part too, and I need her permission to do that."

Jasmine looked slightly placated. Her expression softened. "Look, I'm just worried is all. Sammy's never kept things back from me before, so if she's acting differently, I want to know what's wrong. But as long as it's not anything dangerous, I promise I won't keep on about it."

"I don't consider it dangerous." I said automatically. "Like I said, it would be better to ask Sammy. It's her choice to tell you, not mine."

Of course, Sammy called me that night to tell me how things had gone. "It was pretty easy, really. Duncan just asked me a few questions, told me what was expected of me, and then took me home."

"Like, personally?" I asked.

"Yeah. Why?"

"He'd usually get someone else to deliver stuff for me when I was there." I explained. "I hardly ever saw him. And now, usually Scott does everything when it comes to me. Usually, Duncan just can't be bothered."

"Well, he could with me." Sammy said, her voice growing excited. "I can't believe it!"

I sighed into the phone. "Do you think...this means...he might like you?"

"I'm not sure. Although I do like him, and he's actually pretty cool with me. And I can tell Courtney thinks he likes me, the way she was glaring at both of us." Sammy admitted, her voice dropping in energy again.

"How about the others?" I asked shyly.

"Well..." Sammy answered, "Alejandro seems okay. I mean, he was pretty nice to me on the way there. Like, he could tell I wasn't sure of what I was doing and he told me I didn't have to be so freaked out – my words, by the way. Heather's not so bad – she stopped glaring at me after I made it clear I actually wanted a part in this and was competent. I know Courtney hates me, and I'm not sure, but I get the feeling Scott doesn't like me."

I gave a sigh. "I think it's jealousy. I got that feeling when we first went on that trip – the minute you went to the front, he said he had nothing against you unless you got in the way of our relationship.7 Ignore it – most guys get a little jealous when their girlfriend doesn't spend all the time they want with them."

Sammy sounded a bit more cheerful now. "Okay, I'll keep that in mind. Anyway, Amy's started asking who the gang's van belongs to. Can I tell her anything?"

"Keep most of it quiet," I advised, "But make out that it's an actual relationship and milk it for all it's worth. She's had her turn – you do it now!"

Sammy giggled. "Okay, I will!"

"By the way," I added, "Jasmine's started asking questions. She's worried, because you don't usually keep secrets from her, she says."

"Oh." Sammy paused. "I guess so. Maybe I should tell her. I mean, she's cool, she won't tell."  
"You sure?"

"Yes, I am."

"Okay. See you tomorrow, Sam."

"See ya, Brooklyn!"

I could tell by the look on Amy's face next morning that Sammy had taken my advice. She said nothing to her sister, just shot her death glares all day. As they got to homeroom, I could've sworn I heard Amy muttering "Little show-off who thinks she's better than me..." I gave Sammy the thumbs up.

During break, we told Jasmine the truth together, both taking our turn to tell parts, first how Scott tried to convince me to join, and then how Sammy got involved.

"If you'd been at the sleepover, you would've gotten involved, too," I admitted, "I asked Sammy to cover for me, but she wanted to come with."

Jasmine looked completely thrown by what we told her. "But guys, they're...criminals. They're committing illegal acts! Didn't either of you think this over?"

"Jazz, please stop!" I pleaded. "They do it to survive, not for kicks. And they don't hurt anyone. Besides that, I kind of want a chance to let loose-"

"And I need a chance to try something risky like this!" Sammy added. "Please, Jasmine, please don't tell anyone else."

Jasmine's dark eyes flickered around for a moment. Finally, she sighed. "Okay. I still think you two are crazy and shouldn't be doing this, but I won't tell. I mean, you guys _are _still my friends, right?"

"Friends to the end." Sammy and I said at the same time. And we meant it.

However, I was worried about something else. Sammy was too. "You haven't got any evidence in your house about anything, right?" I said. "And you can check that you're alone before talking about it, can't you?"

Sammy nodded. "Yeah, I take all the precautions, but you don't know what it's like. The maximum time I can keep a secret before Amy finds out about it is, like, two weeks. It's been one and a half, and already she's asking questions. Give it one more day and she'll start going through my stuff and spying on me until she discovers it."

"We have to find a way to keep her off our back." I said firmly. "Shall I ask Scott if he has any ideas? Besides that, Heather kind of reminds me of Amy. I think she might be helpful, if she can be bothered to help us out when I ask, that is."

There was a pause.

Finally, Sammy grinned. "Yeah, ask. If all else fails, we'll just have to find a way to scare her into submission."

**So...yeah. That's the chapter. Please review!**


	23. Chapter 23: What'll We Do This Time?

**Not much to say about this one. Except for review acknowlegements, of course! Thank you, berkbar740, Ali6132, Sideshow Cellophane 26 and Elizabeth Life Stone!**

The next time the gang called for both of us, it was at night again. The second time, Scott was the one who called me out. "I'm the only one who has my own ride." he explained. "Anyway, we need you both back at the hideout."

"And you couldn't do this during the day because?" I complained. It was a Tuesday night, and I had school to think about. "I have school tomorrow."

"Your parents leave the house before you get up, right?" Scott said.

"Yeah..." I said slowly.  
"So they won't know if you're not there?"

"I guess."

"Call in sick tomorrow, because we've got a job for you two to do. The rest of the gang is picking up Sammy and taking her to the hideout right now. You're both staying overnight. And don't worry about clothes – Gwen left some stuff that'll fit your friend, and since you're smaller and skinnier, I, er, 'persuaded' Heather to lend you some of her clothes – you're about the same size, just she's a tiny bit taller."

"What did you actually do to Heather?" I questioned.

"Threatened to tell Courtney that she was the one who read her diary. But then she only did that because Courtney was acting all moody and she wanted to make sure she knew why so she could hold it against her. But she knows that Courtney is like the Incredible Hulk when she's angry, so she's not stupid enough to let me tell her straight. If she uses the information and Courtney puts two and two together, that's her problem."

"Anyway," I said, "Let me get this straight. I'm expected to cut school to help commit another heist with Sammy helping me as decoy, and staying at the hideout overnight?"

Scott nodded, grinning. "And by the way, sweetheart? You get a choice of rooms. There's Gwen's old room, or...I certainly don't mind you sharing mine."

I would've shoved him if he hadn't been driving the motorcycle at that moment. "I'd take the first option, but I'm guessing you'd twist things around so I'd have to agree to sharing your room. Am I right?"

"Well...maybe..."

I sighed. "Okay, I'll do it. But no funny business, okay? That means no feeling me up while I'm trying to get some sleep."

"Sure, sweetheart. But let me warn you now, I'm kind of a restless sleeper, so if I do unconsciously do something, I apologize in advance."

"So how's Sammy going to swing this?" I asked. "Her sister will notice she's not there."

"Oh, well," Scott smirked. "After you told us about her sister, it looks like she won't be coming into school either."

When we got back to the hideout, Sammy was already there and she excitedly told me. "While Duncan woke me, Alejandro got Amy out of her room while she was still asleep, and she's going to wake up locked in a room, blindfolded! Something like the room you were stuck in back then."

"We'll send someone in to explain everything she needs to know when she wakes." Alejandro said. "But for now, she's all right where she is."

"The blindfold is so she doesn't know I'm involved or where she is." Sammy explained. "By the time she's at home, I'll have been there for a few hours, supposedly home from school."

Since it was only late nighttime and not early morning, the gang let us get more sleep. Sammy got Gwen's old room, and I ended up playing teddy bear to Scott, as he wouldn't let go of me the whole night.

When I woke up the next morning, he was still holding me, possibly even tighter than when we fell asleep. Then again, that could've been explained by Scott being awake. His blue eyes were serious, watching me When I woke up, I saw his expression change from serious to playful. "Gotta say, you don't look like you just woke up. Isn't that when people look their worst?"

I raised an eyebrow, blinking rapidly to get the icky sand out of my eyes. "So you've seen me looking worse than this?"

"No, sweetheart, that's not what I meant!" Scott said quickly, in a way that made me realize he'd only just worked out that I could've taken that comment the wrong way. "I mean, I've seen people looking worse than you do right now when they look their best. If that's your worst, I'd pay to see you at your best."

"Really?"

"If I had the cash, that is."

I giggled. "So, how long have you been awake?"

"About an hour." Scott answered. "I did some whittling for awhile, but once I finished one, I decided to wait until you woke up to do anything more. So I just waited like this for awhile." he pulled out a little wood carving of a girl – me! The figure had a look of peaceful satisfaction on her face, and her eyes were closed. It had enough of a likeness to make me feel like I was looking into one of those House of Mirrors mirrors, only this one showed the person looking into it with their eyes closed. I'd seen some of those statues before, since a bunch of them were around the room, but this was the first one I'd taken a proper look at.

"Wow." I breathed. "That's so lifelike. How do you do that?"  
"Years of practice, sweetheart." Scott said carelessly. "I've whittled things since I was like ten – it's just a hobby I've always liked. I even sold a few when I first dropped out of school before I joined the gang."

"Why not now?" I asked. "You're not exactly a known fugitive. People will want these. I mean, you're really artistic."

Scott shrugged. "Guess I didn't think about selling them when I didn't need to just to live. I guess I could sell a few, but that one ain't gonna be one of them. I've done some of the others, though. Guess those could make a few bucks."

"Can I see them?" I asked hopefully. None of the gang's ones were in the open. I remembered Gwen mentioning Scott whittling stuff back when I was a hostage, but I didn't realize that it was something he did often.

He did show me a few that were crammed into a drawer. The carvings of the rest of the gang were perfect. There was one of Courtney's face, dark eyes wide and a gentle smile on her lips, an expression I'd never seen her wear. The full-length one of Duncan had him with that same careless smirk, every piercing he had a tiny dent in the wood. There was one of Gwen, who also had a smirk on her face, but I could just tell she didn't often look like that. The one of Alejandro had him with this expression I saw him wear most of the time – a smile with a flirtatious tint to it. ("This was the exact way he looks at a girl when he's trying to seduce her." Scott explained.) Finally, he'd done just one of Heather, a scowl on her face and not a hair out of place.

"So why did you do her?" I asked. "I thought you couldn't stand her."

"I get bored." Scott answered. "She was new material, so I did it. If I see your friend enough times, I might end up whittling her image." His trademark smirk appeared and he added, "Besides, she's kind of hot." He instantly noticed me narrowing my eyes at that comment, and quickly said "Uh, I mean, she's not as-"

He was cut off by a scream from outside the room. "WHAT'S GOING ON?!"

I remembered what Sammy had told me, and chuckled. "Sounds like Amy's just discovered she's not at home and blindfolded. I suppose it's time to get up."

**I hope you didn't mind the filler. And yes, the carving with the long hair was Dawn. Review now?**


	24. Chapter 24: How Is This So Easy?

**Let's see what happened. And yes, Brooklyn is wearing Heather's canon outfit – relax, Heather herself isn't wearing it. Thank you for reviewing, Ali6132, Sideshow Cellophane 26, and berkbar740.**

By the time I was up and dressed (in a red halter top and short shorts that apparently were originally Heather's), everyone else was up. Sammy, I discovered, had borrowed some outfit that Gwen had left behind. Even if Scott hadn't told me, I could tell that there was only one person who would wear that outfit, because it was undeniably goth. Courtney was apparently down the hall, explaining things to Amy in a way that left Sammy and I out of it.

"Apparently she's the best at talking people into submission." Sammy whispered to me. "Duncan told me – he's the only one that can get around her – Amy will probably end up fearing her enough to stop yelling."

Courtney wasn't back for ten minutes, but when she did, she walked in composed, with a triumphant smile on her face. Sadly, that smirk melted away the minute she looked at Sammy. Her face twisted to form a scowl, but she wasn't angry enough to not say "That sister of yours is a spoilt little brat."

Sammy looked a little nervous at Courtney's ferocious expression. "I'm sorry." she muttered, sounding like her old shy scared self.

Heather looked up and snapped "Why are you apologizing? It's not going to make her a nicer person, is it? My parents apologized every time I got into trouble. What was the point? It still happened."

Sammy was at a loss. She obviously hadn't expected that. She helplessly looked over at me. But I wasn't brave enough to tell either girl to leave her alone, and what would I say, anyway?  
Finally, I spoke up. "It doesn't matter. We all know Amy's spoilt, selfish, shallow and a million more unpleasant things. So what are we doing?"

Courtney's dark eyes narrowed at me, for no other reason other than I obviously annoyed her. "What do you expect?" she snapped. "_You _are playing decoy while we loot. And this time, it won't be so easy. Then we'll find out how useful you _really _are."

This time, we went to a mall. This time, Courtney waited in the van as driver, and the rest of us went in.

"Okay, you two." Duncan said, turning to Sammy and I. "All you gotta do is pick a shop and get the counter unattended. I disable the alarm system, Scott grabs the goods, Heather gets whatever she can find, and we have one more stop before it's go time. Five minutes you stay there, then you leave, get straight to the van and don't stop for anything. Got it?"

We nodded. And to be honest, this time it was easier. We specifically chose a semi-expensive chainstore that was sorely understaffed, so we went to both of the women at the counters (probably only a couple of years older than us), and started asking them about what they recommended, getting them both to parts of the store as far away from the counter as possible.

Finally, after five minutes of stalling, we both said that we had decided not to buy today and left, beaming cheesy smiles and exchanging pleased glances. Soon, all seven of us were back in the van and Courtney was driving away. This time, Sammy took one of the middle seats, tactfully leaving the back so it was just Scott and I in the back.

"You're doing great, sweetheart." he whispered to me. "Maybe it was a good thing your friend got involved, too. I must admit, she's not as much of a problem as I thought."

"If this is about her being friends with me, stop." I whispered back. "She's in this for her own reasons, not to tag along with me. Anyway, what's next?"

"Still going to be one or two more high-risk heists you two'll have to play decoy on. And those are going to be ones where the role is vital." Scott answered. "But for today...well, we're making one last stop, and then it's back to the hideout."

I bit my lip. "When do Sammy and I leave?" I asked finally. "And come to that, when does Amy get home?"

"We'll take you home around the time school ends. And Amy about an hour later."

At that moment, the van stopped. But this time, only Alejandro got out. I heard some arguments from the front seat in whispers, and eventually, Courtney and Duncan swapped, so she was in the passenger seat in the front, and he was driving.

I looked out the window, and frowned. "A liquor store?"

Scott chuckled. "Don't sound so shocked, sweetheart. This is how we celebrate when we pull off something big-time. You gonna be one of us, you gotta get used to it. Alejandro buys it, we add a few snacks we stashed back at our place, then we have fun."

"But..." I frowned. "What's the drinking age?"

"Nineteen. Although I did from when I first joined. Even Gwen drank then, although not as much." Scott admitted. "Alejandro's the only one who's allowed to buy it, but come on, we're not doing any harm. Everyone drinks – why not us? We're not saying _you _have to. Although, you could..."

I paused, and Sammy, listening, turned around to exchange shy glances with me. We both spoke at the same time. "I guess a little bit wouldn't hurt."

We'd expected something cheaper than what they'd gotten, actually. It was pretty much just vodka, and Sammy and I exchanged glances again. Every mention of vodka in books we'd read made it seem like the most effective in getting a person drunk. Finally, she shrugged and decided to join in, so I decided to drink just a little bit too.

I had never had any alcohol before, apart from two sips of one of the weaker substances, wine or champagne occasionally. I didn't really enjoy it much, but vodka didn't have the same overpowering aroma, or much of a taste, especially with soda. So I had a glass. Sammy did too. Okay, maybe I had more than a glass. More than two. But I do know that Courtney drank way more than anyone else. I'd never seen her so loose and careless.

I didn't stay with everyone else that long. Scott seemed to have no qualms about pulling me away for some "alone time".

"You're not drunk, right?" I said anxiously. "I don't want either of us to do anything I'd regret."

Scott laughed. "You're the one who went from zero to like four and you're still thinking straight enough to ask something like that? Sweetheart, you are something else. The first time Courtney drank more than two back when she hardly ever drank, she lost her virginity. Duncan told me about it."

I giggled. "I'm hardly going to do that when I know that I'm kind of buzzed. But..." I added, "I can't go home until it wears off."

"Alcohol goes right through you." Scott said carelessly. "If you don't throw it up, that is. But you only drank a few, so that won't happen – I give it an hour."

And so we made out that afternoon. I'm not sure what happened, because I think I fell asleep or something. The next thing I remember after that was lying on my bed at home, with a scribbled note on my bedside table:

_You might wanna take a breath mint or something to make sure your parents don't know what you've been up to. See ya soon!_

**I would like to say here and now that I actually don't drink. I'm actually around the same age as some of the gang members, and I just don't like alcohol enough to drink it. Review!**


	25. Chapter 25: Is She Crushing On Him?

**So what happened next? Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132.**

The next day at school, Sammy was more subdued than usual. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"Even though she doesn't have any proof, Amy was still convinced I had something to do with what happened yesterday. And I had enough vodka yesterday that I lost my temper and told her that it wouldn't have happened if she was a better sister to me."

"What happened?"

"She told Mom something ridiculous, exaggerating everything. I told Mom something to cover up, but she still believed I did something, even though she knows it wasn't everything Amy said. I'm now grounded for a fortnight. Amy's been grilling me since, trying to get me to tell her what actually happened. Yesterday evening, she asked me how many times the gang had been behind bars...well, she only actually knows that there's three of them, since she only heard Courtney, Duncan and Alejandro talking, but whatever. I know she was a bit scared of them, because I saw how she was acting yesterday. So instead of saying it to them, she takes everything out on me. As usual."

I had a suspicion Amy was going to start on me the minute she saw me, and she did. I hadn't even been in homeroom for ten seconds when she pounced. "So," she sneered, "Let me guess...you skipped school too yesterday? I know you were involved...nothing like this ever happened before you arrived. I mean, seriously, _she,_" she jerked a thumb in Sammy's direction, "Never had a backbone until you turned up. So what? You're secretly part of a criminal organization and pulled my sister into it? Well, you're welcome to it, no one will miss either of you, except for the giant, maybe." (She meant Jasmine). "Just leave me out of it."

I scowled at the older twin. "Sammy made her own decisions. You had no proof that she was involved in what happened to you. And yes, maybe I did play a part in it, but guess what, my mom will never believe you over me. As far as she knows, I hang out with Sammy and Jasmine, and my boyfriend and his friends. If you start talking about random people called Courtney, my mom will have no idea who she is."

Amy gasped, her green eyes lighting up. "Oh? Tell me more!"

"As if!" I snapped. "You'd just _love_ to get me in trouble, wouldn't you? Then let me tell you, if you tell anyone, I will personally make sure that the leader of the gang organizes you to either be maimed by his girlfriend or manipulated into bed by the casanova."

But I wasn't with the gang now. Amy narrowed her eyes, unafraid. "Oh, really? Well, I'll be able to turn them in if either of them did that, wouldn't I?"

"It wouldn't stop your stay in hospital or an STD." I shot back. "And then his girlfriend will come maim you too, probably."

Amy rolled her eyes. "You're bluffing. No one could do anything like that to me. If you don't want me to kill your social life when it's half-dead already, you might want to stop threatening me."

I rolled my eyes back at her. "Face the facts, Amy, I wouldn't care. Sammy doesn't listen to you, and Jasmine won't either. They're the only ones I care about in this school."

Amy left me alone after that, but she sent a lot of poisonous looks in my direction.

Over the weekend, I went out with Scott during the middle of the day for once, and we exchanged stories about what had been going on. Scott told me about how Duncan and Courtney had another fight and Courtney actually almost threw her phone at him, and Duncan had later said dating her required some kind of helmet (or a steel plate – girl has a tendency to kick him where it hurts when she gets mad), and I told him about how I'd threatened Amy.

He laughed. "Nice one, sweetheart." he paused. "Did you mean any of it?"

I thought about it, then shook my head. "Nah. Amy's impossible, but any of that would just make her worse. I hate her, but I wouldn't put anyone through what nearly happened to me. Although maybe I'd like her to get a minor injury...you know, if she recovers."

Scott laughed. "Wow." he said. "I can't believe you actually said that! I have definitely rubbed off on you. You used to act like any kind of cruelty, even deserved cruelty, made you nauseous. Now you'd be happy to let that girl get what she deserves."

I shrugged. "I don't think that's you. Amy brings out the worst in me. I've never been able to stand her. Sammy and I both think she's like all of Heather's worst traits exaggerated."

"Not that she has that many good ones." Scott chuckled. "I hear you, sweetheart. I guess I have it easy living with a toned-down Amy with a few good traits, huh? By the way, let Sammy know that if you two keep up the good work, you pretty much have a place with our gang in the bag. Although," he half-smiled at this point, "I know there's something going on with Sammy. She has a crush on Duncan, right? I mean, you told me that already, but from what I can tell, it's more serious than that."

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I'll admit, I know what Courtney saw in him." Scott admitted. "First, she likes trouble. Second, she likes to be challenged. Third, she's attracted to him." He gave a sigh. "I think she only took an interest in me because I was an obvious troublemaker. If I'd given that girl my heart, she would've jumped up and down on it in her sandals until it was completely flattened. But back to my point, Sammy has this obvious rebel look about her. She wants trouble. And she's attracted physically to Duncan."

I nodded. "I guess that's true. She's always liked him, though. Maybe it developed past just a little crush."

"And what I'm saying is, she shouldn't get her hopes up." Scott said. "He might like her, a bit. I can see he does have some attraction to her, but really, it's not going to work out."

"Why not?"

"Courtney is not going to let go of Duncan." Scott said casually. "If they break up, they break up on her terms. Duncan has to make it clear that he's tired of her being bossy and doesn't want her any more before anything can happen, but he's too stupidly physically attracted to her to give up on her. I've told him a million times, a girl with a good personality and moderate looks is worth a lot more than the hottest girl in the world with a personality you can't stand, but he still won't just dump her."

I gave a sigh. "I didn't see that. Does he really do what she says? Why? It's _Duncan, _I thought he was the one controlling the gang."

"She only really listens to him on the criminal stuff, since he's been making trouble since kindergarten. Besides that, he only gets really seriously dangerous if the offender is a guy or a particularly annoying girl." He smirked. "Actually, I get why Duncan is so fed up now. Before Gwen left, they hung out together a lot. I think she was keeping him sane. Without Gwen, dating Courtney will either kill him, or end badly."

"So what should I tell Sammy?"

"Tell her that I fully approve of her pursuing Duncan, but to keep it from Courtney. If she wants any help, let her know that he doesn't like a girl who's too compliant, but at the same time, won't nag if they get to the dating stage."

I texted this information to Sammy that night. She texted back: _Really? I can do that._

**Can she? Tune in next time to find out! Oh, and review this one, of course. That would be appreciated.**


	26. Chapter 26: What Happened With Her?

**Right, let's keep going! Thanks for reviewing, berkbar740, Sideshow Cellophane 26 and Ali6132 (Sammy is basically Amy's scapegoat for everything, which sucks, so that's pretty much the reason she acts that way).**

**By the way, I forgot to mention. There was a Taylor Swift reference in the last chapter. Take a look back and see if you can spot the references to the first verse of "Stay Stay Stay".**

I should have mentioned that there was an exchange programme going on at our school and another all-girls one across the state. Five students were coming over to stay here for three weeks, then five from our school would go to theirs. It was only for the seniors, though, so I didn't think much of it until the assembly when the five students were introduced, and one of the girls caught my eye.

The girl was petite, with long pale blonde hair and a porcelain white complexion. Her face wasn't exactly expressionless, but she radiated calmness. I knew she looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn't remember where I'd seen her before.

It was only when her name was mentioned – Dawn Luna.

"Dawn!" I gasped in a whisper. Now I remembered. I'd seen one of those wooden carvings in Scott's bedroom. True, the carving didn't look exactly like her, but she was older, after all. She still had the same expression, the same hair, but she was clearly taller and slimmer (how is that even possible?) and it was just enough so that I didn't make the connection.

Oh yeah...now that I remembered, Scott had mentioned that Dawn was two years younger than him, and therefore, a year older than me. I hadn't breathed a word to anyone about Dawn, but should I, now, I wondered. I wanted to tell Sammy and Jasmine that I knew one of those girls, but on the other hand, I didn't know her personally. And with the amount of times Scott would pick me up after school, chances are he'd see her. And what would happen then?

I debated, and then swore my friends to secrecy before I told them.

Sammy listened in silence, and then said "Wow. She sounds interesting. And nice."

Jasmine was even more surprised. "Scott had a thing for a girl who was selfless? That seems so...out-of character for him. But it _is _sweet." she said. "Are you going to talk to her?"

I sighed. "I want to." I admitted. "But I don't know if I should...or even if I could."

"I definitely think you should." Jasmine said. "It would probably be best to let her know what's been going on. How are you going to feel if Scott gets hooked on her again? Besides that, it'll end up breaking at least one person's heart – either his or yours. If she didn't like him the first time, it's a chance to let her know she can steer clear of him. And she's right over there." She pointed across the courtyard to the girl. She wasn't with the other seniors, but simply sitting on a grassy patch, in what even I knew was the lotus position, eyes closed.

"Go on!" Jasmine encouraged. "I really think you should talk to her."

"We'll come for moral support." Sammy offered.

I shyly approached Dawn, not sure how to confront her. Luckily, she opened her eyes just as we reached her, and smiled. "Hello." she said in a very high-pitched voice, but it wasn't annoying or screechy, just gentle and almost...almost not of this world.

"Hi." I said shyly. "You're Dawn, right? My name's Brooklyn. There was something I wanted to talk to you about."

Dawn studied me for a moment, her pale blue eyes scanning me. Finally, she made eye contact with me again. "Your aura shows both confusion and love, and I can see that you're nervous about whatever you want to say to me. May I ask why?"

I couldn't believe what she'd just said. My _aura_? Wasn't that just some kind of New Age thing? But I went along with it, since she was right. "It's just...I think I may know someone that used to know you, a few years back, two years older. And he mentioned you to me, because he used to love you, but he knew his actions earlier on made you despise him."

Dawn studied me again. She nodded. "I know who you're talking about. I remember. I can sense both positive and negative energy coming from your feelings towards him." She gave a sigh. "I did know he felt something for me, but I couldn't love someone with so much negative energy at that time. Besides, he'd never tried to do a thing to show that he wasn't all bad. Despise is a strong word for what I felt, but I disliked him." she said serenely.

At that moment, I glanced up, realizing my friends were further away. Sammy caught my eye and mouthed _You should talk to her on your own – it's between you guys. You've begun – don't worry, Jazz and I won't interrogate you about it afterwards._

I turned back to Dawn. "Let me get this straight. You knew Scott liked you, but didn't give him a chance? When he told me, it was obvious how much that hurt for him."

Dawn sighed. "I know, Brooklyn, but I couldn't give him false hope. I just couldn't see any way of that working out." She smiled. "But I can see that he makes you happy." She paused. "Would you like me to speak to him again? Because he's changed? Maybe for closure?"

"Um, well..." I stammered, "I was actually hoping for the opposite, because..."

"You're worried that my presence will make him forget about you." Dawn finished. "If he cares about you in the way that you think, I know he won't."

"And if he doesn't, I probably shouldn't be dating him, right?" I guessed.

"Well, it's not up to me." Dawn said. "It's up to you."

I shrugged, trying not to be bothered by that. "Well, I think you should talk to him, probably, more for his sake than anything. One of the reasons we became a couple was because he tried to be a good guy for my sake, and that was because he remembered you."

It was pretty surreal, talking to this girl I'd heard about, but hadn't met until that moment. I understood what Scott had meant when he said that Dawn weirded people out. She was strange and seemed to know a little bit too much. But she was also gentle and kind.

Wouldn't you know it, Scott arrived to pick me up after school that day. Since Dawn was in the same classes as the other seniors, I hadn't seen her since the break, but she appeared next to me almost instantly after I caught sight of him. She literally just appeared out of nowhere.

I jumped. "What the – how did you do that? I know you weren't anywhere near me ten seconds ago."

"Oh...it's not really something I can explain." Dawn said serenely. "I expect it would just raise more questions if I tried."

Scott caught sight of me then, and began to smile – but his expression froze, and I knew he'd recognized her. I began to feel guilty, wondering if I should never have talked to Dawn. Maybe it wasn't the right thing to do.

**Do you think it was the right thing? What do you think about bringing Dawn into this? She's one of my favourite characters – my top three already played a role in this, and she's fourth (followed by Bridgette). Review and tell me!**


	27. Chapter 27: What Did She Discover?

**Let's see what happened. Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132.**

I approached Scott shyly. Dawn walked alongside me, but there was nothing shy about the way she walked. She was quiet, but not shy.

When we were within a few metres of Scott, he finally spoke. "D-Dawn?"

Dawn looked up at him (we were about the same height, although she was possibly a little shorter than me) and smiled softly. "Hello, Scott."

I cut in, too nervous to stay silent. "I hope I'm not making things awkward...thing is, I saw that carving in your room, and then Dawn showed up for this school exchange programme and I just had to talk to her...but it wasn't exactly my idea to let her-"

Scott stopped me. "I know this wouldn't be your idea. I remember what things were like." He looked at the girl beside me. "What do you want from me, Dawn? You could've just talked to me three years ago if you wanted."

Dawn's face suddenly hardened. "Back then, I didn't particularly want to speak to someone who framed me for theft and got me suspended." she said coldly. "But I want to move past that. I just wanted to clear things between us once and for all."

Scott paused. I could see he was thinking it over. Finally, he looked at me. "Sweetheart, mind giving us some time alone today? I'll be back tomorrow." He quickly whispered the next words to me. "I promise, I ain't gonna hook up with her." I thought I saw a look of knowing amusement on Dawn's face.

"I trust you." I whispered back.

I looked at Dawn, and she nodded. No way would she initiate any kind of hook up!

So I let them go, and walked home with my friends, who asked me a lot of questions when I invited them to ask stuff. Yeah, I gave them the go-ahead, but still.

"I wonder what they'll have to talk about." Sammy wondered out loud. "It must be weird for him, seeing a girl he hasn't seen for years and having been in love with her once."

"I just hope things will work out between them," I said, "And that nothing more happens."

It was the very next day that Dawn approached me. "I know that you'd like to know what happened yesterday." she stated. "You were right...Scott isn't the same person he was when we last met, but I think that is largely because of your influence. He honestly didn't seem to care about anything or anyone back then. I'm not sure exactly why it is, but for some reason, you made him want to become a better person. For acceptance." She smiled softly. "I'm happy for you, Brooklyn. But..." she frowned again, "I noticed the auras of the people Scott is living with, and some of them are concerning me."

She had my full attention instantly. "Like...what do you mean?"

"I'm not concerned about Duncan so much," Dawn clarified, "But there are some worrying aspects. He doesn't seem like a generally well-meaning or ill-meaning person, but there are obvious problems in his relationship with Courtney. I can see that the relationship is toxic, and that if Duncan doesn't handle the situation right, he is going to end up hurting her badly. He can see the problems, but Courtney can't, and I've noticed her tendency towards possessiveness and jealousy. I couldn't tell either of them that, but I can see there's someone else that Duncan's aura glows pink for at the moment. I don't know who it is, but..."

"I think it might be Sammy – you know, my friend with the blonde hair?" I gestured over to her. "She says she has a crush on him, and he seems to like her."

Dawn studied Sammy for a moment. She nodded. "I think you may be right. Anyway, I'm also seeing some problems in Heather and Alejandro's auras. Heather's aura is an icy blue colour, mixed with faint red, and very hard to read. I'm not sure what kind of influence she'll have on the rest of the group."

"And Alejandro?" I asked.

"His is increasingly worrying." Dawn said quietly. "I can see from his aura that he will not stop at anything to get what he wants. And his thoughts towards you are disturbing. Am I right in deducting that you two have had some kind of relationship?"

I lowered my gaze. "Not exactly." I mumbled. "At one point, Courtney asked him to make me a...conquest...I don't want to talk about it, but at least Duncan stopped him in time."

"I can't be sure, of course," Dawn said, "But with you being around there all the time, he...I suppose the way I should put it is...he wishes to finish what he started, although I can see he doesn't want to feel that way. It conflicts with his emotional connection to Heather, which is why he hasn't done anything to show it. I know he hasn't." she added quickly when I opened my mouth. "It was easy to see, because he is finding it increasingly hard not to act on. He's conscious of it, but is moral enough to hold back. But I can see that if there is an easy way to get to you, it's likely that he'll push those morals aside and act."

I stared at Dawn in shock. First, this was just frightening. Second, what would I do if he tried it on? Third, would he even try that with Heather around?

"What should I do?" I asked finally.

"I would advise you to surround yourself with people." Dawn said. "If you do choose to be around the group, do not let yourself be alone."

"That shouldn't be hard." I said. "Most of the time when I'm there, Scott won't let go of me."

A tiny smile appeared on Dawn's face. "I'm sure that he'd protect you to the best of his abilities." she said.

"I have another question." I added. "I know Courtney hates me, but I'm not sure why."

Dawn paused. "I don't think it's anything personal." she replied. "Courtney has issues with many girls. She has some paranoia that she will lose Duncan to one of them, and cannot face the idea that she may lose him."

"But I'm dating Scott!" I protested. "Does she really have any reason to hate me now? Is she that irrational?"

"Maybe she is." Dawn said thoughtfully. "She has a lot of negative energy in her aura. I think she may be worried because she thinks Duncan and Scott are alike, and if that's your type..." she didn't need to finish the sentence.

"Thanks for telling me all this, Dawn." I said.

Dawn gave a small smile. "It's no problem. I try to help everyone if I can."

**So, yeah, that's this chapter done! Sorry it's so short, but I needed to finish this chapter to start the next plot bunny, and there's not much more that can be said. Please review!**


	28. Chapter 28: How Long Can I Stay?

**Right, I'll keep going. Thank you for reviewing, Ali6132, berkbar740, and Sideshow Cellophane 26.**

Scott picked me up that afternoon, as he'd promised. "Can we go somewhere other than the hideout today?" I asked specifically. "Say...I don't know, Taco Bell on my dime?"

Scott looked a little bit disappointed, and asked "Okay, but then...are your parents home?"

I laughed, knowing why he was asking. "Is that all you ever think about? But as it happens, my parents won't be home until six. So if you leave from out the window, we could have an hour and a half. But," I added, "Taco Bell first, all right?"

Scott shrugged. "Whatever you say, sweetheart. I could do with some nachos, anyway."

I decided not to say anything about what Dawn had told me. I didn't want to think about it, and it would become too real if I said it. I could take every precaution – it couldn't be that hard, since the only gang member I'd talked to alone since the summer was Scott. Instead, Scott asked a very interesting question. "So sweetheart, your parents haven't gone on any business trips this year. How come?"

"Where did you get that information?" I asked. "I'm pretty sure that wasn't in my school file."

"I wanted to know why you were at boarding school. So I looked into it."

"Actually, I was at boarding school as kind of a legacy to my mom's side of the family." I told him. "But they _do _go on some business trips – only like five a year, though." A thought occurred to me. "Their first one should be next week, actually, and for three nights – they leave Friday afternoon, so like just before school gets out, and then they get home Monday night. Which reminds me, I better find out if I can stay with one of my friends."

"Don't bother." Scott grinned. "We're planning another test heist for you and Sammy, anyway."

I rolled my eyes. "You know I'd need an alibi. My parents would never say it was OK for me to stay over with a guy, no matter who it was. I'd have to ask Sammy – or Jasmine, I know she'd cover for both of us."

I 'casually' mentioned my parents' business trip and that I didn't have a place I was staying at the very next day. Jasmine instantly offered. "My parents are pretty cool with letting me have friends over for as long as whenever."

That's when I told her what Scott had said to me. "But we could have a sleepover on the first night or something. If Sammy came too, she could leave without Amy getting suspicious again."

Jasmine, of course, wasn't too pleased with the idea of becoming an alibi, but Sammy and I both managed to convince her in the end. We weren't ditching her – it wasn't our idea. And we did truly plan a sleepover for the Friday – just Sammy and I would have to leave before sunrise. I even passed the info on to Scott, as well as Jasmine's address, and he promised that they'd let that happen. "Also, guess who's on semester break and is hanging out with us again for the next week? She's going back to college after that and she's got a part-time job, but she decided to take off time to come see us!"

"Gwen's back?" I said, starting to smile. Of the female members of the gang, I'd liked Gwen much more than Courtney or Heather.

"But don't worry, we've still got one free room for Sammy for the weekend." Scott added. "And Gwen's not going to come with us for heists, but she's going to hang around and have fun with us."

I'd never been to Jasmine's house properly before the sleepover. It was surprisingly dark for a place with so many windows. I think it was to do with the wallpaper. And it was painfully obvious that Australians lived there, because it was absolutely stuffed with Aussie and Aborigine souvenirs.

Jasmine saw me staring. "We've only been here since I was about twelve." she explained. "My Dad keeps saying we should have sold some of this stuff and it makes us look like stereotypes to visitors, but I like it. Although sometimes it reminds me of holidays camping in the outback. That's when I really miss living in Oz."

There was only one minus about sleeping over at Jasmine's – Whiskers, her cat. I don't care what anyone says, that cat was _vicious. _I just tried to stroke her once, and she scratched me deep enough to draw blood.

"She does that to everyone." Sammy told me afterwards. "Jasmine doesn't seem to mind her – I guess she's used to it – but trust me, you're not the first person Whiskers has scratched without being provoked."

We mostly did the same things Sammy and I had done at my house – watched a movie with popcorn and sundaes, played stupid games, and ended up talking about boys. I only really talked about Scott, and Jasmine clearly didn't really notice boys apart from Shawn, but Sammy was the only one of us not taken. When I nudged her, saying "Hey, you haven't mentioned it, have you?", she instantly became the colour of a gala apple and shook her head.

"Go on!" I encouraged. "It's not like Courtney's going to hear you." So Sammy, still blushing, admitted about her crush on Duncan in some detail.

Luckily, Jasmine took it pretty calmly. "After hearing how you guys are doing stuff with them, that's no big deal." she said.

"Except," I added, "What Sammy didn't mention is that Duncan already has a girlfriend – Courtney, and she'll be insanely mad if this gets back to her. But thing is, Scott told me that Duncan's getting fed up with her being bossy, and he might end up dumping her soon."

I think I only got two hours of sleep before all three of us were woken up by the partially-open window being wrenched back. Jasmine opened her eyes, instantly alert. Sammy rubbed her eyes, and I blinked, before realizing what was going on. Both of us grabbed our bags that we were taking to the hideout, and jumped out of the window.

"Thanks for having me, Jazz." I whispered. "Sorry we had to go so quickly."

"See you at school, Jasmine." Sammy said softly.

Only Scott and Duncan were waiting with the van. Sammy got to go up to the passenger seat, while I sat further back with Scott.

"So why is it just you two?" I asked.

"Everyone else is asleep for once." Scott answered. "Well...okay, I thought I heard something when I was passing Alejandro's room, and Heather was definitely in there, but maybe one of them was just having a nightmare. Gwen is definitely asleep, and Courtney...well, I don't know. She and Duncan argued again, and they are officially through...but they've said that so many times, I don't know if it's going to stay that way. Basically, while they're together, Duncan goes along with what Courtney wants most of the time. Then he stands up to her, and they break up. Then they can't stay away and end up in one or the other's rooms, making up, if you know what I mean."

"Um, spare me the details, please!" I pretended to gag.

"Point is, I don't know if Courtney's asleep or not. I heard her screaming and throwing things around in her room a few hours ago, but I haven't been near her room since then. She always does that after she's had a row with Duncan, and then usually ends up exhausting herself and crashing out."

When we got back to the hideout, Sammy bunked alone in a spare room better than the one I'd been locked in, and I slept beside Scott (I say 'beside' rather than 'with', because we didn't do anything that night).

**Things are garaunteed to get a little weird next chapter. Things are building up!**


	29. Chapter 29: Should I Be Joining?

**Right on, let's continue! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, berkbar470 and Ali6132.**

We woke up a little later than usual. Actually, Scott woke me with a kiss, and then didn't bother to even make sure I knew what was happening before starting a full-on makeout session. I swear, I'm not sure when my red pyjama singlet came off, but I do know that it was pretty fun. And I proved that I was well and truly over what had happened when I was a prisoner, by...well, I'd say it, but then I'd have to bump this up to an M...and no, it's not what you're thinking, I didn't do that exactly.

After that, all the usual morning stuff was done, and by the time I got to the main room, most of the others were still emerging, half of them bleary-eyed. Gwen was the only one up and completely ready for the day – guess she was used to it. She smiled at me when I came in. "Hey, Brooklyn. Scott said you and a friend of yours were hanging around."

"Hi, Gwen." I smiled back, a bit more obviously than she had. "Long time no see, huh? How's art college?"

Although Gwen's expression didn't really change, I could see her eyes light up. "It's pretty cool. I was already into sketching and things, but I've really had a chance to experiment with new things. According to the teachers, I have talent, but I have to start honing it." She shrugged. "Maybe I'll end up in a dark garret, earning only enough to stay afloat with my art, but if all else fails, I can just go into retail, since I'm already doing that." She laughed. "I've forgotten how lazy everyone is here. Classes start early, so I'm kind of used to it now."

At that moment, something occurred to me. "Gwen?" I said. "Can I ask you something? The thing is, I kind of...got talked into possibly joining. I like hanging out with everyone, and it's kind of exciting, but I can't deal with the whole crime-committing thing. I mean, I can do my part, but I hate it. So do I run the risk of not being part of the gang if I don't want to commit crimes?"

"It's part of the package in this group." Gwen shrugged. "Remember, I told you early on that the ransom thing wasn't my idea? I only went along with it because we needed big cash, and we needed it fast. But that doesn't mean you can't hang out with us part-time. What about you do as planned this weekend, then decide?"

I smiled softly. "Thanks. I guess I should've come up with that."

Duncan was the last up, and Gwen teased him a bit. "How is it that your lazybones controls this whole organization?"

Duncan just laughed at her. "I don't know...my endless charm and unbelievable good looks?" Courtney scoffed, refusing to look at him. That seemed to remind Duncan of something, and he called to my friend. "Hey, Sammy, get over here. I have something to talk to you about." Sammy went raspberry pink and followed him out of the main room.

"I knew it!" Scott whispered to me. "Now that he's dumped Courtney, no matter how briefly it's been, there's nothing holding him back."

When Sammy came back, she was still blushing, but smiling. She quietly told me what had happened. "He said he'd dumped Courtney and then asked me out. And I said yes, but wouldn't Courtney kill me, and he said she might try, but it's more likely she'll hurt him before me, even though they're not together, which should soften the blow more than if he'd just cheated on her with me."

Courtney clearly knew what was going on, but she didn't do anything. I caught her shooting poisonous looks at Sammy once in a while, but those were nothing compared to the way she was constantly glaring at Duncan.

We only did one heist that weekend, on the Saturday. It was no huge deal, and we got away with it, although I still felt guilty. Then it was back to the hideout, and this time, I didn't drink as much as I had the last time. I only had two glasses. Sammy, on the other hand, let go. After about an hour, Duncan whispered something to her and she nodded, leading to them disappearing together. Courtney didn't seem to notice, but then, she was drinking more heavily than anyone else. Gwen was the most sensible in only having one, and Heather and Alejandro only drank a couple before stopping – and come to that, Heather drank less anyway. I sensed she didn't want to lower control over herself. Scott drank about five, but he still seemed pretty controlled, since he was used to it. But it didn't stop him pulling me back into the bedroom to make out. This time, we gave each other oral for the first time. It was a little scary, but to be honest, even intoxicated, Scott was careful with me. When it was his turn, he held back on being too eager to get me to deep-throat, and held the back of my head carefully. And when it was my turn...wow. I stopped feeling scared. Yeah, I was definitely over everything that had happened.

When it was over, we cuddled up together. "Nice that I don't have to go home until Monday." I mumbled.

"When you join us, we can do this every night." Scott murmured back. "Then we can hang out in the daytime without me being unable to keep my hands off you all the time."

I laughed, but deep down, I'd thought about what Gwen had said to me. Was this what I wanted? No, I wanted to go to university, have a future, just like she did. I liked staying over with the gang, and I liked Scott so much I didn't want to leave him out of my life. But I couldn't join, could I? I wanted a future. I didn't want to be a criminal. It wasn't a case of love, not right now, anyway. Scott made me feel safe, and cared for when we were together, and we did have a lot of affection for each other. But...I didn't actually love him. I probably would, in time, but was that enough? Maybe it was. I was still swinging between yes and no.

I didn't say this to Scott, of course. I wasn't sure if I wanted this for myself or not. There were good points about joining, but there were so many bad points, too. But on Sunday, something happened which made me decide once and for all.

**What happened? Stay tuned to find out!**


	30. Chapter 30: What Was Her Warning Again?

**And...well...it happened! And yes, Sammy's ringtone is "Mean" by Taylor Swift. Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132 and 123NumberGirl456.**

To be honest, with everything that had happened, you think I would have remembered something so important. But there was too much else going on. The hangovers were the least of it – and they didn't affect everyone anyway. The next day started off as normally as any day hanging out with the gang would start. In the morning, flushed with exhiliration, Sammy joyfully told me about her first kiss, her first time getting to second base, her first make-out session.

"You didn't do any more than make out, did you?" I asked. "Scott told me when Courtney drank that much, she lost her virginity."

"What? No way!" exclaimed Sammy. "Even after I drank as much as I did, I kept thinking to myself that I _couldn't _act like a slut. I mean, for the first time, a guy actually chose to ask _me _out – I kept thinking that if I screwed up, that would be it. But at least I actually have _something_ to get back at Amy with!"

I grinned. "She deserves it. It's going to be great."

At that moment, Sammy's SmartPhone vibrated, and a song began playing. "_You, with your words like knives and swords and weapons that you use against me,_

_You have knocked me off my feet again..."_

Sammy looked at her phone. "Speak of the devil." she muttered, before answering. "Can't you leave me alone for a weekend, A – no, of course I'm not at Jasmine's if you've already gone over there...I was there this morning. Of course Jasmine's with us, what did you think?...I'm with my boyfriend, if you must know...yes, I do, Amy, you're not the only one in our family who dates...I'm going to tell you all about it when I get home Monday afternoon...I don't hate you enough to lie about that, otherwise I would've already done it. Yeah, I know. Bye." She cut off the call. "I am sick of that girl trying to ruin everything good in my life!" she muttered.

"Sure she couldn't trace the call?" I asked.

"Are you kidding? Amy's techno-savvy with her iPad, but she's still learning how to use the SmartPhone. She doesn't even know that's a function." We both giggled.

I asked Gwen a few more questions about art college. As it turned out, the rest of the gang wasn't interested, and she was cool with talking a bit more about it.

The atmosphere in the room was good, too. Although there was clearly no love lost between Gwen and Heather, they kept the hostility to themselves. I guess the trouble started when some of the gang members went out – not sure what they were doing. Well, Heather just stood up and said "That's it, I'm outta here." And then she left.

Gwen and Duncan left at the same time. I looked at Sammy, and she just shrugged and said "I've talked to Gwen. You trust her, right? If Duncan wants to hang out with a female friend, I shouldn't be getting jealous."

I grinned at her and whispered "Courtney would."

Sammy tossed her blonde hair. "I'm glad I'm not her, then."

Scott hung around for a little longer than the others, but then left, again with no explanation I can remember. I can remember him kissing me goodbye, though. It's almost like he knew what was going to happen.

There were just four of us left. Sammy and I, conversing together, Courtney in an armchair, glowering, and Alejandro, who was silently observing. About five minutes after Scott left, he suddenly stood up and said "Brooklyn, may I speak with you for a few minutes, privately?"

"Okay." I replied uneasily. Still I didn't remember what I should have. Alejandro led me into a room that was completely devoid of furniture. Well...almost. There was a mattress. That was it. I stood with my back to the door.

"So...what was it you wanted to talk to me about?" I asked. I didn't like the look on the eldest gang member's face.

"Surely you have guessed by the furnishings." he said calmly. "I didn't think it would be appropriate to use my bedroom, but I've wanted this for so long..."

Dawn's warning finally came back to me, and I turned to open the door. No go. It was locked.

"I have the key." Alejandro explained. "The only other key is held by Duncan, since he started the group. And he's not around at the moment. I'm not asking you to do anything. All you have to do is not resist. You'll like it – every girl I've ever done this with liked it. I'm not going to hurt you."

"If you think I'm going to let this happen like I did months ago, you're sadly mistaken." I managed to get out. "Why would you go after me, anyway? Isn't Heather enough for you?"

Alejandro seemed amused at my words. "Why did I suspect you would bring her up? And yes, I do love Heather. And we do engage in things of this nature together, but you know perfectly well that I feel that physical love is only to enhance an emotionally-based relationship, and can be done in any other situation for another reason."

"No way." I said, trying to be firm. "You can't do this to me."

"Why not? You're sixteen now. I won't hurt you, I swear – I've done this with many girls, and rest assured, all of them are alive and well and living their lives as always."

"And I'm sure you just brought them into a room and told them that you wanted it." I said sarcastically. "And I'm also sure that all of them were in a relationship."

"That _is _a legitimate protest." Alejandro admitted. "That was why I thought to give you this." He retrieved a glass of cloudy liquid from the floor and gave it to me.

"What is it?" I asked warily.

"If you take it, things will be easier for you. I'm being fair here. If, by chance, anyone does find us, I will take full responsibility and make sure they know you had no control over the situation. If not, Scott never has to know, and nor does Heather. All right?"

"No!" I repeated. "I'm not taking this stuff."

Alejandro appeared thoughtful, for a moment. Then, suddenly, I'm not sure how it happened, but I was backed into a corner. "Will you take it willingly, or do I need to use force?"

"How could you do this?" I whispered, knowing I was beaten. "I thought you had morals! I thought you wouldn't actually want me."

"How could I not want this figure, this face? I still vividly remember that glimpse I had back then. I tried to hold back. And I'm _tired _of holding back. Just one chance to do it, Brooklyn, that's all I want, and then it'll be over. You can forget about it."

"It took me long enough to get over how far you got last time!" I burst out. "I have to go through that all over _again_?"

But Alejandro was clearly done listening to my weak protests. "Either take it. Or do I need to make you take it?"

I stared down at the cloudy liquid. I reminded myself, Dawn had said he had moral standards. It couldn't be anything dangerous. So I bravely took a breath, and gulped.

I don't remember much else. I think things got fuzzy, and I felt something touch a part of me that had never been touched before...but that was it. I couldn't see anything properly, and my head was spinning, until everything went black. When I came to again, I was back in Scott's room. Scott himself was hovering over me, looking anxious.

**I know, I know! Poor Brooklyn! Please review.**


	31. Chapter 31: What Could I Do?

**What's going to happen next? Thanks for your review, Ali6132 (I'll hand over Amy ASAP, but I need the others to keep the story moving. Rest assured, you've seen the worst of them) and Sideshow Cellophane 26 (not exactly...she has memories, but they just haven't reached her conscious mind yet).**

"Sweetheart, you're awake!" Scott exclaimed, with concern in his voice. "Are you all right?"

I struggled to remember what happened. "What time is it?"

"It's Monday morning. Sammy's gone to school, but after yesterday, I thought it would be better if she told the teacher that you weren't well." He paused. "Do you remember what happened?"

Images were coming back to me. "I remember being in a room...with Alejandro...and him saying he wanted to...oh my God, did he-"

Scott's face darkened. "It wasn't as if he didn't know there were risks with making any kind of move on my girl. When Duncan and Gwen eventually came back here, they opened the door and saw it happening. Gwen told me you weren't all there, but that you were still crying. Alejandro admitted to everything – he said that he'd wanted you, and that he gave you jet or something so that you weren't conscious enough to fight back. And now..." he blinked rapidly, "I'm sorry, sweetheart." he said finally. "I promised I'd protect you, and the one time you needed me, I wasn't there."

As he spoke, images and sensations came back to me. I was remembering the whole thing. All of it was fuzzy, but what I did remember was that Alejandro did it. He used protection, but he finished while in me. And I remembered wanting to put up a fight, but feeling as if my limbs were too heavy and my mind wouldn't think straight, so I couldn't.

Tears streamed down my face as I realized it. I'd lost my virginity. It had been stolen, and I'd never get it back. And at the moment, I felt so ashamed, that I didn't think I'd ever be able to do anything with any man past kissing. At least that was one thing that he hadn't ruined for me.

"I'm sorry." I managed to get out. "I should've tried to stop him, but the door was locked and I knew he was stronger than me, so I-"

Scott stopped me. "You don't have to say anything. I know you couldn't have done anything – we know exactly how things happened. I've known Alejandro for nearly three years now. It's always the same thing – if he sets out for something, he won't stop until he gets it. I suspect he's been waiting for a moment ever since the summer. He didn't get to do it the first time Courtney asked him, and so it stopped being about that and started being about proving to himself he could do it." He touched my face lightly. "You know, this isn't the first time he's gone to lengths like that. Heather started off as one of his conquests. The reason they've become so close is because she caught on and treated him coldly for months before they became a couple. An initial failure makes him all the more determined, and he refused to give up on Heather. Then he eventually stopped being the game player and fell for her, just before she fell for him. Then, he finally won her."

I didn't want to talk about it, but I had one more question. "What about everyone else?"

"Sammy was in shock." Scott told me. "She seemed all right this morning, but she's still worried about you. She probably wouldn't have gone to school today, except I had to promise to keep her posted." He held up my phone. "Do you want me to text her?"

"I'll do it." I said shakily, quickly texting a message to let her know I was all right. "And the others?"

"Heather's furious, of course. She's not the nicest to Alejandro at the best of times. If he didn't regret it before, he definitely does now. She's pretending he doesn't exist, and she says to tell you she knows you didn't do anything. Gwen left early this morning, but until then, she was doing the same. She asked me to let her know how you are. Even Courtney's concerned about you, although I heard her saying to Alejandro that if he was bored with Heather, he should talk to her, now that she's single." He scowled. "But seriously, she wants you to be okay. Duncan is...well, he's trying to decide what to do. We kind of need Alejandro around to do all the strategy and practical stuff in our gang, and there's not much we can do. Anyway, the next time you're over here, I'm not letting you out of my sight."

I nodded. "But...why do I still feel so drained? From what I can remember, he didn't hurt me intentionally, right?"

"It's the drug. It's not fatal, but it took a lot of energy out of you." Scott explained. "That's why I thought you should stay here."

There was a knock on the door. "Can I come in?" It was Courtney's voice. Of course, not that many people around here would knock.

Scott looked at me for an answer. I slowly pushed myself up to a sitting position, nodding.

Courtney was given the okay, and she opened the door. I'd never seen that look on her face – she looked concerned. When she saw me sitting up, she managed a smile. "I'm glad you're alive." she said quietly. "It takes..." she paused, glancing up. "Scott, could you get lost for a minute? This is serious."

Scott's blue eyes became stubborn, but I quickly said "It's okay. I'll be fine."

So it was just me and Courtney. The girl who had despised me, up until today, at least. "I was scared for you." Courtney admitted.

My eyes widened. "For me? But you hate me, don't you?"

"I thought I did." Courtney muttered. "Look at you – you're no threat, yet Scott instantly decided that you were the only girl for him. Why should you get a steady relationship with a guy like him, when I was stuck with a relationship that was off more than it was on?" Her dark eyes were sincere. "I'm not over Duncan, not yet. But I've thought, and I've decided that it's him, not your friend, who's to blame for dumping me and asking her out. But my point is...I know I asked Alejandro to do this all those months ago, but when the others found you...well, Duncan carried you out, and you were all glassy-eyed, with tear stains, and...I...I just felt awful with everything I'd ever said or thought about you. I'm sorry, Brooklyn." She paused. "I don't admit I'm wrong often, so don't expect this again."

I managed a small smile. "So...you don't hate me any more?"

"I don't hate you...I don't even dislike you." Courtney admitted. "Maybe we should start over?" She looked like a little girl at that moment, shy and unsure. If it wasn't for the streak in her hair, I could have imagined I was seeing the high school Courtney – pretty, popular, very serious about schoolwork, running for class president...

I thought it over, and then said "Yes. Let's start over."

Courtney smiled, then suddenly lunged forward in a surprise hug. "I've been dying to have a girl to talk to." she admitted. "I never really got on with Gwen that well – we had absolutely nothing in common. She just tagged along with us because she'd been best friends with Duncan since she was in first grade and he was in second. And I can't talk to Heather about anything. She just never cares about anyone else."

I gave a sigh. "I don't know if I'll be back here, though." I said. "It's going to take a long time before I can even do anything with a guy again."

Courtney paused, putting an arm around me. "You know, Alejandro regrets it." she whispered. "I've never seen that before. I can't help feeling like it's my fault – he would never have thought of doing that if it wasn't for me. I've known him for longer than the other gang members – we were at the same high school. I mean, he was in the year above me, but I knew him pretty well – Scott would have told you that I was one of those girls who fell for him. I'd been with Duncan for a while, but we broke up temporarily, and that's when it happened, I left school at the end of junior year – I couldn't face going back after he disappeared on me. Then I hooked up with Duncan again, and things went from there. And by that time..." she paused, and then whispered, "Alejandro was one of the first people to join Duncan and I. We met Scott a few months after that, and Gwen came over a lot, but didn't join until she'd finished high school." She smiled. "I'm telling you this because getting over this is not so hard. I did it, after all."

I smiled weakly, not sure if I believed that. "Thanks, Courtney."

There was one last thing Courtney asked. "One more thing. Do you think...are you...going to go to the cops about this?"

I shook my head. "No. From what I've heard, you guys are making Alejandro pay socially."

Courtney laughed. "You got that right. Scott and Heather won't even look at him. At least..." she grinned. "One good thing came out of it. I realized that I don't hate you, and that no break-up is worth going psycho over. I'm glad to have a friend."

I didn't see Alejandro again, that day. I saw the others briefly, when I went through the main room, about to go home. Heather gave me a pitying look, and Duncan, for once looking serious, gave me a wave, but that was it. Scott took me back to Jasmine's on the motorbike, where I would stay until my parents returned home and picked me up that evening.

**Intense, huh? I never intended to make Courtney and Brooklyn friends originally, but I thought, well, Courtney is older in this fic, so she needs to grow up and start acting like an adult. So when something like this happens to Brooklyn, she realizes that her own viciousness sparked it off, sees her problems, and sees things more clearly. She doesn't just feel sorry for Brooklyn, by the way – she really wants to be friends.**


	32. Chapter 32: How Can I Recover?

**Back to school! Thank you for reviewing, berkbar740 (I know, but the plot point is essential to the story) and Ali6132. **

Of course, I had to go back to school on Tuesday. Sammy greeted me with a huge hug. "Are you all right?" she asked.

"Been better." I muttered. "But I'm trying to get over it."

"I was so scared for you!" Sammy said. "When I saw you, you were sort of...it was like you were awake, but not, both at the same time. Courtney actually started _crying, _believe it or not."

I managed another smile. "Courtney says she wants to be friends with me. That break-ups aren't worth our energy. I'm sure she'll want to be friends with you too, once she's completely over Duncan. Just give her time."

Sammy bit her lip. "I didn't expect what happened at all! I thought Alejandro was an okay guy! How did I get that so wrong? I mean, I could tell he regretted doing it, but how could he even do it in the first place?" She looked anxious. "I mean, you said he was a casanova, but rape? Drugging you?"

"I don't want to talk about it!" I said in an angry whisper. Sammy looked shocked and went quiet.

I sighed. "Sorry. But really. So..are you still thinking about joining? I wouldn't fault you if you wanted to."

Sammy sighed too. "Yeah. I want to. But only after we finish senior year and graduate! I want to have enough credits so that I can apply to college if I want to, like Gwen did." She paused. "Are you thinking of still joining?"

This time, I had my answer. "No. I want to stay in touch with everyone, and just because it'll take some time to get back to where I was with Scott, I'm not going to break up with him. I mean, I only just became friendly with Courtney! That's a big thing."

I didn't tell anyone else about it. Sammy knew, the gang knew, and that was enough. I couldn't even say anything to Jasmine. It was too shaming. I'd read that it was natural to feel guilty and that it was _not _my fault, but my feelings refused to believe that, no matter how many times I reminded myself of it.

I didn't see anyone in the gang again until Friday. But that day, the beat-up van was parked outside the school.

I exchanged glances with Sammy. She didn't hesitate to run up to the van, check the passenger seat in the front was free, then jump in. Just Duncan was in the van, it seemed, since it moved off immediately.

"Who was _that _guy?"

I jumped at the shrill voice beside me. Amy was standing there, looking incredulous. "I _know _I've seen that van, but I didn't recognize the guy driving it." She looked at me. "You know, don't you?"

"So your sister has a boyfriend." I snapped. "Big deal. It's about time."

Amy was almost speechless. "She..boyfriend...I..._where did she meet this guy?_"

"He's one of my boyfriend's friends." I said coolly.

"Oh, so you're both dating guys your parents wouldn't want you to bring home?" Amy sneered. "My parents would faint the day Samey brought that guy home."

"Either use her real name and keep your face intact," I said through gritted teeth, "Or let me do the honours of punching you so hard, you and Sammy won't look like twins any more!"

I think Amy could tell I was at my breaking point. Look, I'd been drugged, raped, guilt-tripped (by my own mind), and felt moody all week. If Amy had said anything else, I would have tried to punch her face in. As it was, she just tossed her hair and walked away.

Scott didn't call for me until Saturday morning. "I thought I'd give you some space for a while, but we need to talk." he said. "You wanna go anywhere special?"

I chose the first place I could think of. "What about Subway on my dime?"

"How come you always say on your _dime_? It's a weird expression. A dime doesn't even buy anything!"

"Fine, what about on me? I pay, but you start driving this thing." We weren't properly arguing or anything, it was just a joke, but we zoomed off to Subway on the motorbike anyway, bought our subs, and started talking.

"To be honest, I'm really jumpy and I really can't control my moods right now." I whispered. "I threatened to punch Amy yesterday, and I honestly want to cry right now. I don't know if I can do anything with you now past kissing. I wouldn't mind testing it out."

Scott nodded. "But you don't want to go to the hideout?"

"Is Alejandro still there?"

Scott nodded again. "But no one's talked to him since last Sunday. That doesn't mean he hasn't made it clear that he wants to make things up to you. That he truly regrets what he did."

"Oh, really?" I scoffed, swinging into a sarcastic mood. "And what does he think he can do to make up for the fact that I've lost the chance of having my first time be really special with someone I actually wanted to be my first? I didn't exactly imagine my first to take place when I could barely even focus."

"Would you forgive him?" Scott asked, in a merely curious tone.

I thought about it. Then I said "Dawn warned me that she'd seen it coming. The reason he hadn't made any moves before was because he had enough moral standards not to, but eventually, desire overcame morality or something like that. I won't be able to truly forgive him until I'm truly over it. And I'm a long way from that."

The other four members of the gang weren't in the main room when we got back, so we went to Scott's room uninterrupted, and we started trying to make out. We kissed, that was fine, his hands wandered, I didn't mind, but then one went to my chest and the other went below my tailbone and I froze, a cry of fear sticking in my throat.

"Stop." I said. "I'm sorry...please stop..." Scott instantly removed his hands and sat up, pulling me onto his lap.

"It's okay, sweetheart. I've stopped. Don't worry, we'll get through this."

I got a call that evening from someone whose number I didn't know. "Hello?"

"Hey, it's me."

She didn't need to say her name, but I recognized her voice. "Courtney?"

"I got your number from when we had your phone. I can't speak long – we've only got like one mobile here and it's Duncan's, and I'm not speaking to him enough to ask him for anything right now, so I had to borrow this before he noticed it was gone. Anyway, I've been tossing ideas around, and I figured you need to get some self-confidence back before anything. So I was thinking to feel good, you have to look good. Do you have the money for a spa day?"

I mentally checked my account. I always saved $100 for a rainy day, but I hadn't been spending that much recently. My last allowance intake had been at the beginning of the month (it was the weekend I spent with the gang, the first of December being on the Sunday, and the last week of school before Christmas break was approaching). So I hadn't spent any of my allowance yet.

"Yes..."

"Great. So have I." Courtney said over the phone. "I have a range of ideas on how to help you recover, and I want to start tomorrow – you know, so we can do it together. Leave it all to me. I know your address, so I'll come pick you up at ten. All right?"

I wasn't sure what to say. Maybe she was right, and I needed to treat myself to a spa day to help me feel better. On the other hand, I didn't like that she was taking over. But, I reminded myself, Courtney wanted to be friends with me. She was probably just trying harder than she needed to.

"All right." I said into the phone. "See you tomorrow."

**I figured that if Courtney wanted to be friends with someone, she'd try hard, but she'd probably still end up getting a bit too bossy. I'm planning to end this fic soon, by the way. Just preparing you guys!**


	33. Chapter 33: Does This Help?

**Spa time! Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132. It's starting to feel as if not many people are reading this.**

I had to explain to my mom that I was going out that Saturday with someone she hadn't met. "She's one of Scott's friends." I explained. "I've met her several times before."

Mom narrowed her eyes. "So she's left school?"

"What's the problem with that?" I said defiantly. "You don't have any problem with me dating a guy who's left school, but I can't be friends with his friends? We've hung out before as a group."

"It's just a little strange." Mom said. "There's something not quite right. Do you really have anything in common with his friends?"

I had to think about this. "I've got plenty in common with them!" I bluffed, going through a few. "Courtney, who called, she used to date Scott before me, and she is really cool. I've been down recently, and she wanted to cheer me up." Not a lie, but not the complete truth – Mom would've freaked, and I didn't need that on top of, ahem, losing my innocence. "Gwen's really nice, too. She's at art college, but she sometimes hangs out when she's around, so I've gotten to know her. She's great at giving advice – and sketching." I decided not to say anything about the boys, or Heather. But it worked, because Mom reluctantly dropped the subject, although she did ask me again, "Why didn't you tell me you were meeting some of Scott's friends?"

I shrugged. "I guess I never thought about it." I admitted. "I'm not friendly with _all _of his friends – just a couple."

Courtney arrived in a different vehicle to the van. She had a tiny but neat little two-seater car.

"I'd been saving most of my share of the ransom money, unlike most of the others." she explained. "I got this second-hand with it last month, and it still runs pretty well. I was getting sick of having to go out in that van all the time."

On her own, Courtney seemed much more relaxed than I'd ever seen her before. She talked to me casually, and we finally started getting to know each other. I already knew that she'd been heading for law school, but she told me about the first time she'd applied. "It was so embarrassing! I was like eleven and starting to defend my classmates who had detention, and then I opened the letter, and I'd been rejected because I was too young!" She laughed. "I mean, I find it funny now, since I'm old enough to attend law school and to be honest, I kind of still want to go, but I prefer some drama. But it was mortifying back then."

"But...you're still in the gang." I pointed out. "Is there really anything holding you back now? Didn't you only join because of Duncan?"

"Maybe..." Courtney said slowly, "But there's more to it than that. I like doing crazy things. I never did anything crazy until I met Duncan, and I'm not giving up on doing those things just because he's got a new girlfriend. And believe it or not, I do like most of the gang now. It'll be a while before I can get over Duncan, though, but hey, that's one reason why a spa day is so important. Both of us need to show that we know we're strong, beautiful people, right?"

I nodded, starting to feel genuinely excited. Maybe Courtney was right. If I had some more self-confidence and felt and looked good, I'd feel less guilty.

"And while Heather drives me nuts sometimes, she can be pretty fun to have around." Courtney added. "Scott is like super awkward, but as you know, he's a lot more sensitive to atmospheres than he lets on, and when he does fail at something, it's kind of funny." She giggled.

"And Alejandro?" I ventured softly. I knew she wanted to say something, but didn't want to make me awkward.

"I know he was wrong with what he did, and he's way too disrespectful with the amount of girls he goes through. But once you get past that, he's genuinely a cool guy. I can talk to him about most things and he'll listen and just know if I'm asking for advice, or just want a shoulder to cry on, or whatever I want to hear." She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I know you probably didn't want to hear that."

"No, I asked." I said. "Scott told me he regretted it."

"None of us have really spoken to him since, but it's obvious." Courtney said. "I think he's in an over-dramatic mood because Heather's more angry at him than the rest of us and she refuses to even acknowledge him, and that's making him more frustrated than ever, but I think it's legit. He really wishes he hadn't done it...he puts it as wishing he hadn't 'given into base desires'. At one point, he even said if there was something he could do to make things up to you, he'd do it."

"Maybe he should be paying for this, then? Seeing as it's to start fixing the damage." I joked. Both of us laughed. "But seriously, a lot happened. I mean, before this, I could do just about anything with Scott and still feel completely safe. Now, I don't remember anything clearly, but there's a certain low-level line where I just freak out. If I get past that, I might be starting to get past all of it."

I did feel better after that day. When Courtney set out to do something, she was determined to do it, and today, she was determined that both of us would end up looking our best. We decided to skip the massage (she knew that I would have some inhibitions about touch), but then there were facials, manicures, pedicures, waxing... really, everything.

"Are you going to get your lashes done, too?" Courtney asked.

I shrugged. "Nah. And no need to ask about yours." I was a little jealous of Courtney's looks, to be honest. Her eyelashes were naturally long and dark.

We had lunch (on me) at a small quiet sushi bar (Courtney's choice). Then, after that, we got our makeup done.

As Courtney drove me back home at the end of the day, I tentatively broached a subject. "Um...Courtney...you know my friend Sammy?"

"What about her?" Courtney's voice had suddenly become cold and hard, but I continued.

"Do you really not like her?"

"Let me put it this way:" Courtney said. "I never liked her – she's vapid and shallow. And she has horrendous taste in guys." She paused, and then said "Not that I'm jealous of her or anything. And I guess she isn't horrible at getting the job done." I wanted to defend Sammy, but I knew from experience that I shouldn't push it. I knew Courtney pretty well, and if I defended Sammy, she'd just become more stubborn about it, and it might hurt any kind of friendship we were developing.

Luckily, once I changed the subject, Courtney relaxed again and became pleasant. We got to my house, and I was just about to get out of the car, when...  
"Wait!" Courtney said suddenly. "You don't...wanna come back to the hideout for a little while or anything?"

I gave her a "what do you think?" look.

"I mean...you'd be okay. Nothing would happen to you."

"I just can't." I said firmly. "I don't feel like I can face him again. Not yet." I didn't need to say the name.

"You're going to have to sometime, though." Courtney pointed out. "Why don't you just get it over with? You don't have to be scared, Brooklyn. The longer you leave it, the harder it's going to be."

I frowned. "Courtney, are you asking me to come back, or are you ordering me?"

"I'm _telling _you, as a friend, that you _should _come back. There's nothing to fear. Even if there was, you think anything would happen with all of us there? I know Scott would want to see you, and none of us want anything to happen again. Come on."

I sighed. Courtney was quite nice when she wanted to be friends, but she really was bossy!

**So next chapter, we'll get to see Alejandro again! Okay, I know a lot of you probably hate him right now, but I'm not trying to make him the straight up bad guy. He's just got a really skewed view of the world and can't stand failing at anything...so if he does, he has to rectify that, no matter how wrong it is.**


	34. Chapter 34: What Did Karma Do?

**So, let's get back to the hideout.**

I felt so, so awkward when I followed Courtney back into the main room, with the other four there, as usual. I did instantly notice that Alejandro was at a distance from everyone else, with his usual smile gone. He looked thoroughly depressed.

Heather was the first to see me, and her grey eyes flashed with an emotion I couldn't place before she managed a small, tight smile that lasted only a second. Duncan's only reaction to seeing me was to raise one eyebrow a tiny bit, but Scott's eyes lit up, and we hugged.

Somehow, when I glanced back at Alejandro, our eyes met. I couldn't read the emerald orbs, but somehow, I knew there was something in them. And Scott left his arm around me, making me feel safe enough to face him. And with my treatment earlier, Courtney was right – it did make me feel more confident, and I'd stopped blaming myself for what happened.

Heather finally looked over at him. "What are you waiting for?" she snapped. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but haven't you spent all week talking about what you wanted to say?"

"And I have every intention of doing so." Alejandro said, not a hint of emotion in his words. He got up and came slightly closer, but not so close that I would flinch. "Brooklyn," he said, "I wish to apologize for my behaviour towards you. I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking, and I'm grateful that you didn't inform the authorities."

Although his words were formal, his tone was sincere and apologetic to the core.

"I would do anything if I could erase what happened." Alejandro continued. "I had no malicious intent and I never truly wanted to hurt you. I don't expect you to forgive me immediately."

I finally found my voice. "I know you didn't do it to hurt me. And I know you'd wanted to do that for months. Because you didn't get a chance to do it the first time."

Heather gasped. Oops...I'd forgotten that she wasn't there.

"I suppose I can say for now that I accept the apology, but it's going to take me a long time to get over it." I added.

Heather was looking directly at Alejandro now. "What does she mean, the first time?" she demanded. "Did you try that on her before? I know you only met her AFTER we started dating, because you told me about the whole ransom thing."

"Nothing happened, Heather." Alejandro said, his usual calm charm coming into play. "Brooklyn made an escape attempt and I simply offered to help punish-"

"You WHAT?" Heather didn't let him finish. "I _knew _something like this would happen! I _told _myself that last week wasn't the first time! Why did I ever get myself into something so _stupid_?" Although she was covering up with anger, I could see the hurt in Heather's grey eyes. She clearly felt cheated on again, and there was no way I could take back what I said.

Even so, I desperately tried to fix it. "Nothing happened!" I said quickly. "It was nothing to do with emotions. It's never been anything to do with me!"

Heather's glare turned on me. "I _know _it's not you – Little Miss Perfect! _Some _people just don't know what the idea of having a girlfriend means, ie, that you're supposed to dump them if you're screwing every other girl you see." She stormed away, calling over her shoulder, "Oh, and in case you didn't get it the first time, I just dumped you! For good!"

I stared in shock. I knew they hadn't been speaking since last week, but that hadn't counted as being dumped? This had to be serious. And Heather wasn't one to get back with someone she dumped, no matter how perfect they were for her. And, although a total womanizer who'd taken the one thing from me I'd never get back, Alejandro was clearly The One for her.

"I'm sorry!" I said quickly. "I swear, I didn't mean for this to happen!"

Alejandro stood up to go after Heather. "I suppose that's what karma decided would happen. I took something you valued, and in return, I lost someone I valued." His face became set. "But I'm not giving up the woman I love that easily."

I hung out with the other guys and Courtney for a while, but by the time I went home, I knew things weren't working out. Just as Scott and I got up so he could take me home, Heather strode through the main room to the outside of the place, and I caught a glimpse of her face. She'd been crying.

On Monday, I confided in Sammy. "I feel awful." I told her. "Alejandro already screwed up their relationship enough. But now Heather's even more hurt! What am I supposed to do?"

Sammy frowned in thought. "That's a tough one. What do you actually want to do?"

"They're a perfect match, anyone can see that." I answered. "In spite of everything, I think we should get them back together. But the only thing that'll ever convince Heather to get back with him is if he proves that he's never going to cheat on her with another girl. And that she means more than another girl."

Sammy's eyes lit up. "I know! She means more because he'd stay with her, even if she does give it up for him! Can you get in contact with any other girl he's done that with? And...has she?"

I shrugged. "From what Scott told me, I think they have. And...well, Courtney was one of those girls. They went to the same high school. Maybe she knows some other girl who it happened to."

Sammy nodded. "That'll work. And we need all the information we can get on Alejandro and Heather's relationship earlier. How they got together, how they act, what's special about it. We have to remind Heather of that, and get a good comparison compared to another girl. That'll be a start."

"Right." I agreed. "That's where the rest of the gang comes in. And we're going to have to talk to Alejandro, too. Heather may have just dumped him, but that doesn't change the fact that he knows her better than anyone else."

We agreed to talk to whoever we next saw. So far, Scott had never gone without seeing me at least once every week, and Duncan seemed to be just once weekly, no more OR less. This time, it was me seeing Scott Tuesday, and I asked, just to be sure of what was going on.

"Heather's still blanking him." he answered. "If he tries to talk to her, she'll pretend she doesn't hear anything and if he persists, she'll leave. It's actually getting annoying. Neither of them are happy – it's affecting everyone else!"

I managed a smile. "That's why we need to set them back up. Sammy and I have been talking. I feel like it's my fault that this happened. So okay, Alejandro kind of got what was kind of coming, but I don't like hurting people, even if they deserve it. And Heather did nothing to me. She could easily have blamed me for what happened, but she didn't. There's no reason why I shouldn't help her."

Scott didn't look as enthusiastic as I hoped. "What do you mean, 'we'?"

I laughed. "Don't worry, I'm not asking you to play matchmaker. But Alejandro's been doing this womanizing thing since high school, right? And Heather's been his true girlfriend for a shorter time, right? And she means more. We have to remind her of that, and that means we need to get in contact with some of his early conquests. Courtney said she met him in high school. I'm guessing she'd have some clue on how to contact a few of them. Does she keep in touch with any of her school friends?"

Scott paused for a moment. "I think she might. Remember when I told you she left for a while? She didn't say where she was exactly, but she mentioned a friend of hers. I'll tell her that you want her help tonight."

I smiled. "Great. And let Alejandro know that I'm working on it, too. I need as much information about him and Heather as possible if I want this plan to work."

**We'll talk about this in the next chapter. Later!**


	35. Chapter 35: Who Should I Talk To?

**Here you are, the next chapter. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone (no apology needed, I should stop expecting reviews and start being pleasantly surprised at them) and 123NumberGirl456.**

After I got the call from Courtney a few days prior, I'd put the phone number in my contacts, listed simply as "Gang", since she said they only had the one phone. When the number came up that evening while I was lounging in my room, I wondered who it was from.

Tentatively, I answered the phone, putting it on speaker. "Hello?"

"Brooklyn?" The voice didn't say who it was, but I knew that deep voice pretty well by now.

"Alejandro? Did Scott pass on my message?" I asked.

"Yes, he did. Thank you – I think I underestimated how nice you truly are, that you would do this, after what I did to you. I think your plan does have potential to work, and I'm willing to try anything. At the moment, Heather won't even speak to me. I'm out of ideas for the moment, and that is not something that happens often." He sighed. "There are a lot of unpleasant firsts I've encountered since meeting Heather, but I can honestly say that she's worth it."

I momentarily wondered what made Heather so special, but all I said was "Well, to be honest, I'm doing this more for Heather. I've only ever seen her happy when she's around you. Okay then. I figured that I need as much information as possible about your relationship with her. What was the difference between her and all the other girls, you, uh..." I trailed off.

"She started out as one of those girls." Alejandro admitted. "We met shortly after I finished high school. Well, I didn't officially finish, since I never attended the graduation ceremony, but I do have the credidentials, should I ever decide to do something else with my life. Anyway, I was just scoping out a few women as usual, down at the beach, and then I saw Heather. She was with another girl, and so I struck up a conversation with both of them, which is something I did a lot. Her friend was instantly smitten with me, but Heather just gave me this stony look. And then she told me to leave them alone. So I did, but not before I'd manipulated her friend into giving me Heather's number. I don't recall the girl's name, but she was very useful. From there, I pursued Heather for a longer time. I know she found me irritating, but it started to work, little by little. What changed things was simply that – she wasn't like every other girl. I had to make more of an effort with her to get anywhere. And I also saw a lot of my own traits in her. She is the only person I've ever met who can measure up to me. She unwittingly stole my heart by not submitting to me. When I eventually did win her over, she still didn't change. She's always been the same strong girl I fell in love with. Every other girl I ever slept with before or after that couldn't compare. I don't want Heather for that. If I did, I would have left her after the first time we did that together. I want her there because I love her. It's as simple as that. There wasn't much the other girls did for me outside of the bedroom, except for their looks." He sounded apologetic as he spoke. "I'm sorry, Brooklyn, but that's just how I am. I don't set out to hurt people – it's just a hobby."

I scowled, although he couldn't see me. "All right already! You don't have to keep talking about it! I'm only just starting to get over what you did to me!" I quickly calmed myself down. "So okay. What I got was that Heather would have been just another girl if she'd submitted to you quickly. But she didn't, and you spent more time with her, and that refusal to fall for you made her special. You see her as your only equal, and you are in love with her. No other girl has ever made you feel that way. Is that right?"

"Yes, that's it exactly." Alejandro answered. "Is there anything else you need from me?"

"Maybe." I said. "Do you keep in contact with any of the girls you've done that to, apart from Courtney?"

"No. I feel that it's better to cut ties with them, so that they don't feel awkward. When I began doing this, when I was still in high school, I attempted to stay friends with many of them, but since I've left school, I see no point in doing that any more. I assume that you want to find another girl and use her to compare what happened with her compared to what happened with Heather, to remind her that she means everything to me."

"Uh-huh." I wasn't sure where this was going. "I was going to ask Courtney, since I hear that you went to the same high school and that she still keeps in contact with a few people."

"Let me just give you a few details on how I do things, since it would be best to find someone who had a typical experience, since occasionally, I did things differently. I'll give you an example...Leshawna, from my high school. When I first saw her, I, on impulse, went over to her, and struck up a conversation. I complimented her beauty, her straight talk, her attitude...even her, to be honest, horrendous dance skills." I heard him audibly shudder. "She was instantly smitten, although she had another admirer who she was clearly very close to, although they weren't in a relationship. I took her on two dates, and she submitted to me within two weeks. After the fortnight was over, I told her that I didn't think things were working out and that we needed to break up. She was angry with me at first, but we were on amicable terms by the semester's end. That is how it works with me, even now, minus the official break-up."

I suppressed a sigh. I really didn't like this conversation, but it was giving me everything I needed for the plan. "OK, got it. And one more thing...are you still doing that, with Heather living in the same place as you and all?"

There was a pause.

"Well...sometimes..." Alejandro finally admitted.

"I don't want to hear anything more about it." I clarified. "Just don't do it any more. You can't. If this works but then happens again, I'm not going to do a thing to help. It's either all the single girls in Canada...or Heather."

"Heather, of course." Alejandro answered. He gave a sigh. "I haven't even talked to another girl besides Courtney since things happened. If giving up on that is what it takes to win Heather back, I'm willing to do it."

"Good." I rang off.

Courtney didn't call herself until Wednesday evening. Again, I picked up and said "Hello?"

"Hey, Brooklyn." Courtney said over the phone. "Scott said you wanted my help." She paused. "I'm not sure why you want to get those two back together, though."

"Let me ask you this;" I said, "Is it good to have those two apart?"

Courtney heaved a sigh. "Well, no. But if it was me, I wouldn't be bothered. Moving on. You wanted me to find someone else who suffered?"

"I guess you could put it that way." I said, with a weak smile on my lips.

"The thing is," Courtney said, "I know a girl who had that happen to her earlier this year, who was at our high school. Thing was, she had a boyfriend, so Alejandro never approached her then. But she was alone at the beach last spring, so he approached her then."

"When was that?" I asked. "Was it when I was..."

"Yes, around the time of your escape attempt, actually." Courtney said.

"I remember!" A faint memory swam to my conscious mind. "Scott said that Alejandro had said something about a girl giving surfing lessons at the beach."

"That would have been her." I could hear a fondness in Courtney's voice. "Her name's Bridgette. She was one of my closest friends at high school. Okay, so she doesn't actually know much about what I'm doing right now – I didn't want to tell her I was breaking the law – but back in the summer, I stayed over with her for a few days. Thing is, if I did contact her, there's no garuantee she'd help. Don't get me wrong, she's a great friend, but...she was very hurt when she realized she'd been played. I don't know if she'd agree to doing something to help Alejandro of all people. The last time she talked about him, she was calling him 'Ale-heinous'."

I giggled at the name, then turned serious. "Do we have any other options?" I asked.

Courtney paused. "No. I guess it's Bridgette, or no one." She paused. "I think you'd have to talk to her, too. I'll call her in a second and tell her what's going on. I'll get back to you tomorrow – but don't be surprised if she refuses."

**And tomorrow will be in the next chapter! Sorry, but I HAD to include Bridgette. Also, I figured that she'd be the only girl in canon to be Courtney's constant friend. They both seem to respect and like each other, and that really hasn't changed from the first season. Please review!**


	36. Chapter 36: What Will She Say?

**And the next day...**

Duncan picked Sammy up after school the next day, but I let her know she didn't need to say anything. She called that night.

"We went back to the hideout." she said. "Just to make out and that – but I could feel the tension, because everyone was there. By the way," she paused, "Does Courtney still hate me? She definitely doesn't hate you – I could tell from...you know."

"I don't think she really hates you." I said truthfully. "I asked her, and she said she thinks you're shallow, but I think she's just annoyed because Duncan dumped her for you. She'll probably get over it in time."

Finally, Courtney called. "I've spoken to Bridgette." she told me. "I explained the situation to her, but she's not sure, because she's never met Heather. She didn't say no, though."

"So...what does that mean?" I asked.

"It means that we'll have to talk to her face-to-face, and I'll have to introduce you guys." Courtney answered. "I've told her we'll call in Saturday afternoon. That okay?"

"Sure." I said. "What time?"

"I'll pick you up at one sharp." Courtney said. "And seriously, don't be late."

I didn't argue, although I had to wonder what Courtney's deal was with something that petty. I sighed. Bossy she may be, but I had to keep in mind that she was trying to be nice. Besides, it was better to have Courtney as a friend and trying to take charge than it was having her hate me and doubting that I could do anything she would want me to do.

Although I had said nothing to Jasmine about what had happened that fateful weekend, Sammy and I did tell her about the break-up and trying to fix things. But it was just regular girl talk about pretty much anything. When we said that, I got the feeling that Jasmine was grateful that she hadn't been pulled into all of this drama.

Sammy asked me a lot of questions about Courtney's friend that had been a conquest. "Sammy, stop." I said eventually. "I'll tell you after I meet her, okay? Courtney says she's a good friend, but I have no idea what she's like, apart from that."

I waited until Friday night to let my mom know I was hanging out with Courtney again. That's because I knew what she was going to ask. She was already suspicious enough that me, a sixteen-year-old girl, would be hanging out with people I knew through a boyfriend who was three years older than me (to think, one more week of school and then Christmas break – I'd known the gang for eight months now, and technically been with Scott for seven). So I knew in advance that she'd ask to meet Courtney, and she did.

In desparation, I called the gang's number. I got an irritated but familiar voice answering. "Hello?"

My heart sank. "Heather?" I said. "Hi...um, it's Brooklyn. Is Courtney around?"

Heather gave a dramatic sigh. "Yeah, she's somewhere around here." I heard her away from the phone yelling "Courtney, get out here!"

There was a pause, before I could hear Courtney's voice faintly. "What do you want, Heather?"

"Phone!"

Finally, I got Courtney on the phone. "Hello?"

"Hey, Courtney, it's me."

"Are you all right?" Courtney asked. "You sound worried."

"Well...it's about tomorrow. My mom is kind of overprotective of me, because of everything that happened last spring. She insists that she has to meet anyone I'm hanging out with – I mean, it was hard enough to get her to let me hang out with my friends from school, and it was harder to convince them to let me go out with Scott, especially after I told my mom I was with Sammy and when she tried to call me from their line, Amy answered and blew my cover. And I kind of mentioned you..."

"And she wants to make sure I'm no danger to her little girl?" Courtney said, her voice jokingly mocking. Her voice softened instantly after that, but she sounded happy and confident. "Don't worry, Brooklyn. As long as it's not an hour-long interrogation, I'll do it. If there's one thing I'm good at, it's putting up an image. Trust me, five minutes and your parents will think that the only way I'd ever lead you astray is if I suggested you went to the same hair salon as me."

I giggled, knowing she was referring to the green streak in her hair. "Thanks, Courtney. See you tomorrow."

I didn't have to worry at all. Courtney was right. She turned up in one of the outfits that had been in the room I'd been locked in – white dress shirt under a grey sweater vest and olive capri leggings, in spite of how cold it was getting. She greeted my parents ultra-politely, and made out that she was doing...pretty much what she would be doing if she hadn't joined the gang, doing her second degree in law and passing all her exams with flying colours. She also assured my mom and dad that she knew me well.

"Scott introduced us ages ago, and we really hit it off – most of our mutual friends feel the same way, too. Brooklyn's like a little sister to all of us."

She was perfect, saying all the right things. Mom and Dad instantly trusted that I would be fine if I hung out with her.

"Did you mean what you said, about me being like a little sister?" I asked.

"I totally did!" Courtney said warmly. "I mean, sure, you started off as kind of like an annoying little sister, but..." she grinned. "You grew on me! I regret not trying to be friendly to you sooner. You're definitely a lot more fun to talk to than Gwen _or _Heather, especially now. None of us can even talk to Heather without her snapping at us right now."

I gave a sigh. "Well, that's why we're doing this, right?"

"To make Heather move from unbearably annoying to tolerable, yes." Courtney agreed. "At least Alejandro's stopped attempting to talk her around. It just makes her worse. But at least he's trying to act like things are normal around everyone else – he's a little quieter than usual, but at least he didn't go all moody on us."

Finally, we drew up to a place in a neat little neighbourhood, outside a bungalow with large windows.  
"That's where Bridgette lives." Courtney told me.

**We'll meet Bridgette in the next chapter! Review?**


	37. Chapter 37: What Did He Do To Her?

**Let's see what happens. Thanks to 123NumberGirl456 (I think she's that type...it's why she hasn't said no yet) and the guest reviewer (I expected that kind of reaction).**

Just as we got out of the car, the door of the bungalow opened and a really cute buff guy with blonde hair came out. He caught sight of us, and waved, yelling "Yo, Courtney!"

Courtney waved back. "Hey, Geoff. How long have you been back with Bridgette?"

"Since the end of June! Hey, it's a record so far – give it one more month, and we'll be engaged!" Geoff called back. "Catch you guys later!" He jumped into a convertible parked outside the house and sped off.

"Did I just go invisible?" I asked.

Courtney laughed. "That's Geoff, Bridgette's boyfriend – they've been sort of on and off the rails since high school. They're usually on, but every so often, Geoff gets a bit...well, he works in the Canadian TV industry, and every so often, he gets what Bridgette calls 'Captain Hollywood syndrome' and at those times, they're not together. But he's right, almost seven months makes it sound like he's finally got it under control. Anyway, don't worry, you're not invisible – Geoff's just tactless and unobservant. He probably didn't even realize you were with me. He's an okay guy most of the time."

Finally, we got to the house. Courtney knocked, and the door was opened by a girl who I instantly liked the look of. She had a friendly smile, with pale blonde hair tied back into a ponytail, and green eyes.

"Hey, Courtney." the girl said. She looked at me. "Brooklyn, was it?"

I nodded shyly. "And you're Bridgette?" The girl nodded and we went in.

I was surprised, to say the least. I just couldn't see how Bridgette and Courtney could be as good friends as they evidently were. Courtney was a bit uptight and bossy, getting upset easily when things didn't go her way. Bridgette was easygoing and friendly. She'd roll her eyes at Courtney overreacting, but would still be supportive. I felt completely at ease with her, right from the get go.

We started off just making small talk, getting to know each other. Although I relaxed quickly, I was reluctant to broach the subject, the reason I'd come at all. Luckily, Bridgette said it first.

"So...from what I heard, you were helping get Alejandro's girlfriend back with him." she said. She scowled as she said the name, clearly still hurt. "I still don't get how he could have a girlfriend at all. I mean...I know I wasn't the last, and now I'm pretty sure I wasn't the first, either."

"Believe me, I know." I said darkly. "I didn't have quite the same experience as you, I'm sure, but I'm still trying to get past it." I wasn't about to tell Bridgette what really happened, since I'd just met her, but what I said was true enough. However, my recovery was becoming more rapid – I was hoping to retest my limits the next time I saw Scott – but it didn't mean I'd forgiven Alejandro. Yet. I had to wonder, in time, would I come to see him in a good light, the way Courtney had?

Bridgette nodded. "It not only hurt me, but it nearly broke my own relationship with my boyfriend." She looked sad now. "I'd only just gotten back with Geoff after he went a little bit...well..."

"I told her what you said." Courtney said quickly. "We saw Geoff on his way out. So he was in a Captain Hollywood phase at the time?"

"No...but he was just going back to being _my _Geoff." Bridgette said. "He was still living somewhere else. Then I met Alejandro on the beach one day, and I hung out with him a few more times because he was nice and fun to talk to, and he seemed to like me. I thought we were just friends, but about a week after we'd met, he started trying to get closer to me, and I couldn't help it – I let him. He knew I had Geoff, but I'd also confided about why we'd broken up earlier, and he knew exactly how to cast enough doubt for me to stop thinking about Geoff. And within three weeks, I'd slept with him. A few days after that, he visited me one more time to say he was sorry, but he didn't think we should keep hanging out and regretted not taking things more slowly. That's the last time I ever saw him." She looked guilty. "Unfortunately, that was the day after Geoff had moved back in with me, and he had just discovered, to an extent, what had been going on. He moved straight back out again, and refused to even talk to me for a week. It was another month before he moved back in properly. I only found out over the summer that this wasn't the first time it had happened."

"I didn't know it had happened to her at first, when I stayed over," Courtney interjected, "But when I heard about it, I instantly remembered Alejandro talking about her, and so I told her about me. And multiple other girls."

"And you're sure that his current girlfriend isn't going to be one of those girls?" Bridgette asked.

"Positive." I said firmly. I could see why Bridgette had been so hurt. It had been doubly insulting – dated and dumped, then almost dumped by her real boyfriend, too.

"Last time I spoke to him I actually addressed that." I said. "I said that basically, he could either have her, or continue the way he was. He said her, and I believe him."

"I can tell when he's lying." Courtney claimed. "It's true."

"And I can tell that he makes her happy." I continued. "I've never seen anything else that makes her smile that much. I just felt that I needed someone to prove that out of all the girls he's been with, she's different." I paused. "Would you say something to him now, if you had the chance?"

Bridgette paused, staring into her lap. Finally, she made eye contact with me again and said "You came here to ask me to help get them back together, right?" I nodded. "Then the first thing I'll have to do is speak to him."

"I'll get him over here. Like...is next weekend a good time?" Courtney offered.  
"Not over here!" Bridgette said quickly. "If Geoff is here at that time, he'll either get the wrong idea, or more likely just not let him in. That won't get us anywhere."

I looked at Courtney helplessly. She hadn't told Bridgette about the hideout, right? Could we do that? Could we trust her not to say anything?

After a long pause, Courtney spoke. "I figure that he probably shouldn't know about you coming in advance. That's why I figured it would be better to bring him here than for you to show up there. I guess the only option is to meet somewhere in the middle. But I figured that we need somewhere...you know, quiet. Private."

"I'd offer my house," I said, "But my parents are already overprotective. No way would I be able to swing that." I gave a sigh. "Courtney, why don't you just say it?"

Courtney glanced around, then sighed and said "I think that's the only option." She kept crime out of it and said nothing about the hideout being an abandoned factory, but she made it clear that she was living in a building with four other people.

When we left that day, we had a plan. We'd get Bridgette to talk to Alejandro the next Saturday. In the meantime, we'd both get to work on Heather.

"Nothing too obvious." Courtney said firmly. "I'll talk to her too, but if you come over at all next week, drop a few subtle hints. The first step we need to get to is to have her admit she misses him. Then we can go from there."

**But Heather is pretty stubborn, right? Can that work? Please review!**


	38. Chapter 38: Will She Admit It?

**Well, Brooklyn's trying!**

Scott picked me up from school that Monday. I asked him specifically if we could go to the hideout. "I want to retest my limits." I whispered. "I think I'm getting through things."

And I had. That afternoon, I couldn't bear to take off any of my clothes, but just about anything we could do fully clothed, I could deal with. The most I could take was when Scott slipped one hand under my shirt, and pulled my strapless bra down, just a tiny bit. It felt a lot better than it had before this had happened, in fact, because it was a sign that I was getting better, and that I wouldn't have to be forever too scared to deny myself (or Scott) what we wanted.

After we made out, we talked for a while. "I'm glad you're getting over things, sweetheart." Scott commented. "I didn't want to say it while you were scared, but not being able to touch you was driving me crazy. I had to keep reminding myself the whole time that you were worth it."

I giggled. "That is possibly the sweetest thing you've ever said to me!"

Before I left, I asked where Heather was, planning to put Operation Matchmaker into action. She was in her room, so I knocked on the door.

"Whoever it is, get lost." I heard Heather's voice snap.

"Um, it's me." I called shyly.

"What, are you calling for new eardrums or something? I told you to get lost!" Heather's voice was full of sarcasm.

"I just wanted to check how you were." I said hesitantly through the door. "Did I do something wrong?"

Finally, Heather gave a sigh. "Fine. Come in if you have to. I guess you being the one knocking isn't so bad...it could be worse."

I slowly pushed the door open. I could instantly see the difference in the girl I'd first met that summer and the girl in front of me. She still had an ice queen look about her, but the look in her eyes made her look like a fallen queen, not ruling. Apart from that, the vibes I felt were icier than ever.

To be honest, I started wondering if what I was doing was worth it. At this rate, it was going to be impossible.

"I'd ask how things are going," I ventured softly, "But I guess I know the answer."

Heather scowled. "What, would you expect me to tell _you_ I'm not okay, even if I'm not? Besides, things are going just fine with me."

"I'm just being nice to you!" I protested. "I've known you for a few months now."

"Just because I don't think you're a total loser doesn't mean we're friends or anything!" Heather shot back. "Let me guess, now that you're all close with Courtney, you wanna try and be my 'gal pal' so we can do all those girly teenage things in chick flicks?"

"No...although now you mention it, that might be fun." I joked, hoping to lighten the mood. "But since you have that thought, why do you not like me?"

"Haven't you learned it yet, Brooklyn?" Heather said, rolling her eyes. "I'm not nice. I don't like _anyone_. It's nothing personal – it's just me."

"Then...why do you hang out with people if you don't like them?" The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them.

Heather tossed her hair. "To make me look better. Duh. Do you think I actually like these people?"

I shrugged, but another burning question spilled out of me. "You could do that anywhere, any time. But you chose to live with a street gang. How come? I mean, what if the cops did find you guys?"

Heather started to look a bit worried here. "Well...that's because I...because...why am I even bothering to explain myself to you?" she finally spat. "It's not like I have to. Get lost, okay?"

I knew I was wearing Heather down, and I couldn't stop now. "I heard somewhere that you were really popular in high school. What changed, Heather?"

That seemed to be the key. Heather finally met my eyes. "You really wanna know?" she muttered. "I was about seventeen at the time, maybe eighteen. Just after I finished school – I turned nineteen last summer, when I first joined. Anyway, I was at the beach with my...I guess you could say my friend, her name was Lindsay, when this random guy came up to me and started flirting and all that crap. And for some reason, when I told him to get lost, Lindsay actually gave him my number-"

"I think I know where this is going." I interrupted. I remembered the story – this was the same one Alejandro told me. "And if that's the reason you're here...why didn't you decide to leave once you dumped him?"

Heather scowled, but I could see her weakening. "Because...because...because I miss him, okay?" she burst out. "I've wanted to leave, but every time I start packing, I start thinking and I want nothing more than to beg him to take me back. Then I remember what I saw. I knew you weren't the first, and probably not the last either, but..."

"Why me?" I ventured softly.

Heather chuckled bitterly. "Isn't it obvious? He waited for a chance to get to you. He's never done that before, not that I know of. The only person he ever persisted with was me. And then you come along, and after a failed attempt to get to you, he still waits months! He didn't get the chance the first time – you said so yourself. I thought that when I started living here, he'd stopped. I'm sure he did stop for a while. But then he just takes the first chance to finish what he began? No way could I ever trust him again."

I kept my voice soft. "But he never cared about me. Don't you ever see the differences in him when he's around you?"

But I knew I wasn't going to get any further with Heather yet. She'd admitted to missing Alejandro. That was a start.

I went out with Scott on Thursday, but we only went out and then back to my house, where we were able to get to my room, after a quick "hi" to my parents from both of us. All too soon, Saturday was upon us, and there was no way I was going to miss this.

**So we'll see what happens next episode!**


	39. Chapter 39: What's This Discussion?

**Let's see what happens when Bridgette comes!**

Courtney picked me up early and dropped me off at the hideout. "Because my car only carries two people, I can't take you with me to pick up Bridgette." she explained.  
"Why can't she drive here?" I asked curiously.

"Didn't you pay attention last week?" Courtney sighed. "Geoff has some TV thing he's shooting and he has their car. I said I'd pick her up. You'll be okay here, right?"

I paused. Courtney saw my hesitation. "Most people will be out of here by the time I get back, but they're around right now. Scott actually isn't here, but Heather's still sulking in her bedroom, probably. I think Duncan has another date with Sammy, but he'll be there for a while. If you're still freaked out about being alone – and I wouldn't blame you, I would, too – just go make Heather let you in. She'll eventually open up just so you'll stop yelling at her to open the door." I'd told her about the conversation I'd had with Heather, so now I asked a question.

"So nothing's changed?"

"She's still not talking to Alejandro, but she's stopped ignoring him completely." Courtney answered. "That's definitely a good sign. Mostly, it's just glaring at him, but the fact that she's paying attention to him at all is a step in the right direction."

When I entered the hideout without Courtney, I was surprised to see one more familiar face there.

"Brooklyn, I didn't know you'd be here!"

"Sammy, what are you doing here?" I asked.

Sammy grinned. "Didn't I tell you? I'm going to be over here a lot more. I told you I wanted to join. Last week, when I was out with Duncan, I told him that I definitely wanted to join, so I'm going to be staying over here quite a bit – like, most weekends. I figured I could tell my Mom and Amy that I'm staying with you or Jasmine. Amy was trying to stop me recently, telling Mom I was dating someone totally wrong and describing what she knows from catching a glimpse of Duncan, but this time, Mom didn't believe her, because how on earth could I get a boyfriend with Amy hogging all the attention?" Sammy started laughing as she finished her sentence. "Anyway," she continued, "We're going out soon. Just on a date, and probably another test heist, but just the two of us, this time."

"Be careful, then." I said seriously.

"I always am!" my blonde friend smiled.

Sure enough, only five minutes after everyone was gone except for Alejandro (and Heather, I guessed), Courtney and Bridgette turned up. Well, Courtney walked into the main room first, and addressed Alejandro. "There's someone I brought with me who Brooklyn and I agreed you should talk to." And then Bridgette followed her inside.

To say Alejandro was surprised would be an understatement. I'd never seen him lost for words before, but this time, he was well and truly shocked. "Bridgette?" he finally managed.

Bridgette met his eyes. "At least you remembered who I was." she said, her tone neutral. Not cold, not warm, just neutral.

"Of course I remembered you." Alejandro said in his softest voice. "How-"

"Stop." Bridgette's voice became cold and angry at that moment. "I'm not here to let you talk me around and mix me up all over again. I'm here to talk to you about why you did it, and what makes that girlfriend of yours any different."

I won't bore you with the details. It was pretty similar to the phone conversation I'd had with Alejandro earlier on. Bridgette did take a bit more convincing, and the conversation was longer, but she still got the same message.

"Okay, I believe you." she said. "And I'll do what I can. Not just for you two, but for every girl you didn't care about."

Alejandro visibly winced at that comment. He'd never seemed bothered by his actions before, so I guessed that Bridgette's bluntness had been what got to him. But it was true – being tied down would mean he wouldn't continue to play any girl unlucky enough to attract his attention. "I wouldn't expect anything more." he admitted. "I'm sorry that I hurt you, Bridgette. I wasn't aware that I created any other difficulties for you."

"Didn't she say she already had a boyfriend?" I couldn't stop myself from speaking.

"Don't." Bridgette said quietly. "There's no point in bringing things up again." I couldn't believe how nice she was still being (Courtney later confided that she couldn't believe it, either, and told me that Bridgette's longest time for holding a grudge was under ten minutes), but I admired it.

So, now we just needed a way to get them back together. We knew the couple missed each other, and we knew that Heather was stubborn. But the question was, what was the one thing that would get her to give Alejandro another chance?

We ruled out romantic gestures or just talk. "Heather's what I could refer to as an anti-romantic." Alejandro admitted. "That was one of the first things I knew about her. Flattery is my standard approach, and usually, all it did was make Heather push me away all the more. She told me later that she preferred to have me challenge her ideas."

"And what exactly does that mean?" I asked.

It was Courtney who answered. "Twisting things around to make things look as if she's in control, when really, she's not the one pulling the strings. Only some people can do it, though."

"Heather's the only one who can see through me when I do it, though." Alejandro admitted. "Afterwards, she complains about whatever happened and asks how I talked her into it. The easiest way to get her past it is to highlight her stubbornness. Make it sound negative, and she'll deny it. Challenge her to prove it, and she will."

I grinned. "I already made her admit she misses you." I said. "Demonstrate proof that she's special, twist her ideas, and you have another chance."

"But don't go too fast." Bridgette suggested. "I don't know Heather, but from what you say, we have to take things slower, or she'll work it out quickly."

Courtney hesitated, then nodded slowly. "You're right. I hate to admit it, but sometimes, I take things a little too fast because that's what works with me." She shot a sharp glance at Alejandro, but you could see she wasn't really angry – after all, it had been years ago. "But Heather's different – work too fast and she'll figure it out. Brooklyn, you talked to her on Monday, didn't you?" I nodded. "Cool. If we introduce you today, Bridgette, then we can probably start nudging her in the right direction in a few days."

"Also, I don't think I should come." I said. "Like you said, we can't have Heather figure things out. If I come with you, she'll probably work out where I was going with what I said to her on Monday. I'll wait out here."

Courtney paused again. "Are you sure?" she asked, with concern that really did feel sort of like she was an older sister.

I took a deep breath, trying to work out what I was saying. I was saying that I wasn't afraid to be around Alejandro without anyone else there. I wasn't over things, not by a long shot, and maybe I wasn't ready to take a step like this, but I had to do this sometime. It might as well have been when I had this chance, and I had a legitimate reason.

I tried not to let my voice shake. "Positive." I said. I don't think I succeeded, since Bridgette gave me a concerned look, too, but both the blonde and the brunette let it go, and left me in the main room with the man who had almost killed my self-image.

**Yes, Brooklyn has decided to take that step! Let's see what happens next in the next chapter.**


	40. Chapter 40: Am I Finally Recovered?

**Right, let's continue. Thanks for reviewing, Courtneylover.**

I didn't say a word at first, and just stared at the ground, trying desperately to think of something, anything. Christmas was next week. School would be starting back a week after that, on the third of January, since that was a Monday. It was all meaningless happenings floating around my head. I couldn't think of anything more interesting, but my mind wanted so much to have something to be distracted by.

"Was there something you wanted to say?" Alejandro's voice broke through my thoughts.

I jumped. "Oh. No. I...there was..." I wasn't sure what to say.

"It's all right." he said softly. "I know you're not comfortable being around me, especially alone, and I don't expect you to get over it straight away."

That made me look up. "You don't? But you said..." I trailed off.

"I know. The full impact of my actions didn't strike me until afterwards. I suppose it was because I'd grown so used to it, it was meaningless. I forgot that it could be truly scarring. And..." he paused. "The approach I took was unforgivable. My morals may be...flexible...but they are still morals, and I didn't keep them-"

"It's okay, you don't have to explain it." I said quickly. "You've already apologized. I just want to move past it! It's over, I don't want to think about it again. We both know where the other stands at this point. Agree not to talk about it again?"

Alejandro nodded solemnly as I finally made eye contact with him, one of the first times I'd done that directly since the incident. "All right. I understand."

I think he knew my true reasons behind ducking out of talking to Heather myself, but he didn't say anything about it. I was grateful for that – I didn't want to seem too obvious about getting over things. And when Bridgette and Courtney came back out, I felt like I'd achieved something, although there was a wave of relief flooding me, and all the tension in me eased.

Scott arrived back from wherever he was a few minutes later, so we went back to his room and talked and cuddled for awhile before he took me home. We made out, but kept to second base only, since I still wasn't comfortable with going any further.

Courtney texted me the information development that night: _From what I got, I think Heather knows there's something more than what we're saying to her going on, but she doesn't know what it is. She was giving me suspicious looks the whole time. But she sympathized with Bridgette and I can tell she's thinking about how different it was with her, so that's a good sign._

I texted back: _When should I come over next? Next Friday is Christmas Day, and my parents have this thing about Christmas Eve to Boxing Day being a family thing, so..._

_Wednesday, then? _Courtney suggested. _And speaking of holidays, are you going to come over NY's Eve? Duncan's probably already invited Sammy – it's pretty much like after-heist highs, but extreme. PLEASE come – I don't want to ring in the New Year with nothing to do but watch my ex make out with his new girlfriend!_

While I debated how to answer that, the phone rang. I picked up. "Yes?"

"Hey, I got bored of waiting for your reply." Courtney explained. "Are you coming on New Years' or not?"

I paused. "I guess I could," I said slowly, "If I slept over and told my parents I was with one of my other friends."

"Great!" exclaimed Courtney. "Scott was probably going to ask you anyway – it's just it came up. Anyway, no going back to his room to make out until after midnight, all right? I may not have anyone to kiss at midnight, but I'm not going to let that ruin the night!"

I laughed. "Sure, Courtney. Of course."

Just because I didn't go to the hideout until Wednesday, though, it didn't mean I couldn't see Scott. I'd known my parents were busy on Monday, so we spent the day together. We didn't really do anything different from usual, just had fun, went out (this time to Popeye's Chicken – it was actually my first time there, but it was surprisingly not as greasy as I'd expected), then went back to my house, made out (I'd had so much support since it happened that my recovery was going so quickly, that if it wasn't for the matchmaking scheme, it was almost as if it hadn't happened) and then cuddled as we talked.

"So...Courtney asked me if I was coming over on New Year's Eve." I said.

Scott smiled a bit sheepishly. "I was going to ask you, I just hadn't gotten around to it...are you?"

I grinned. "I figured I could tell my parents I was with my friends, and then stay over."

Scott paused. "You could. I know Sammy's going to be there, but...look, you've told your other friend about hanging out with us, haven't you?"

"Yeah..." I said slowly. "Why are you bringing it up? You know I've told Jasmine." (As a matter of fact, Jasmine wasn't around for the holidays – she and her parents were spending Christmas with her grandparents in Australia – somewhere in Queensland, if I remembered correctly).

"Just...it sometimes gets kind of dull with just the few of us." Scott answered. "We sometimes split up to see our family members, but our New Years doesn't feel like a party with just us. So we don't mind having more people around, I mean, yeah, there's going to be more of us with you two, but-"

I shrugged. "Sorry. I'd ask Jasmine, but she's overseas for the Christmas holidays. Most of her relatives live in Australia, so her family are spending Christmas together over there. And I haven't told anyone else about you all." I paused. "Is Gwen coming back for the winter break?"

Scott shrugged. "I think so. She's going to spend Christmas with her family, but I think she's coming back for New Year's. I don't know, though – she's not really into things like that. I found out she never did anything like that in high school, apart from a few times in senior year. You know Gwen – she's far too serious to be into things like that."

When Scott left at the end of the afternoon, I kissed him goodbye. "Don't forget to pick me up Wednesday." I said. "I want to see you a little bit at least, before I have to brave Heather."

"Don't worry, sweetheart, I wouldn't let you leave unless you'd hung out with me for just a little while." Scott teased. "I'll see you then."

I watched him zoom off on the motorcycle, then went back to my room. When we'd made out that afternoon, I'd let myself test my limits again. I hadn't let myself be touched in my most sacred region (excuse the phrase, I don't use the V-word), skin on skin, but I hadn't minded when he touched it over my panties. And I'd been okay with letting him touch anywhere else skin on skin. I wasn't sure why I'd lef him get so far, when the thought of it scared me when it wasn't in the heat of the moment.

Who was I kidding? I knew perfectly well why I'd let Scott get as far as he did. He made me feel safe. When we were in an innocent embrace, I felt like there was no way anyone would be able to hurt me.

And at that moment, I made a decision. It was dangerous, and maybe I'd chicken out when the time came, but I wanted to do it.

**I'm aiming to make New Year's the ending of the story. There may be an epilogue after that, there may not. I'll be back soon!**


	41. Chapter 41: Will They Be Together?

**Let's move on! Thanks for your review, Elizabeth Life Stone, Moi, PW, and the other guest reviewer. To review questions:**

**In Chapter 8, what Scott took to "keep it safe" was Brooklyn's first kiss.**

**This Sammy is not an OC – she's from "Total Drama Pahkitew Island – you might not recognize her because in the show, everyone calls her Samey. If you watch the first episode, she tries to correct Chris, but he refuses to use her real name, as does everyone else.**

**Alejandro held back for a while both because of Heather, and because he wanted to be moral.**

On Wednesday, after Scott drove me to the hideout, Courtney met me in the doorway. "I think it's working." she whispered. "Yesterday, I heard Heather crying, and I'm almost sure she said '_why did I ever do it' _and '_I hate being in love', _so I think she just needs that one last push."

I knocked on Heather's door. "Can I come in?"

There was a pause, before I heard an irritated sigh. "Fine. Come in if you have to."

I opened the door. Heather was lying on her bed, staring into space.

"You look depressed." I ventured.

"Probably because I am." Heather quipped. "You'd probably understand better than anyone."

"You do know the reason you're depressed, right?" I asked.

"Don't play dumb, Brooklyn, I _told _you everything." Heather scowled.

I gave a sigh. "Yeah, I know. You miss him. He misses you."

"Are you kidding?" Heather scoffed. "He must have thousands of girls begging for his attention."

"None of them are stubborn, proud and strong-willed the way you are." I said softly. "Be honest – do you honestly think he'd want any of those girls before you? You're not the only one who turned him down, you know – but you were worth it. And did he stay with any girl after he slept with them? Not once. But you?"

Heather hesitated for what felt like a full minute. Finally, she sighed. "I guess." she admitted in a tiny voice. "I know he _does _love me, even with what happened. I want him to take me back, I guess." She looked at me. "I don't want to be so weak, though." she murmured. "I can't just ask him to take me back. Even if he did accept me back with no questions asked."

"That's not weak." I told her. "Weak is not standing up for what you want. Weak is not going after things you want due to embarrassment. You're a lot of things, Heather, but you are _not _weak. And if you really want him back, you're going to go back, and say you're willing to give the relationship another shot – but one more hint that he's sleeping with some other girls, that's the end."

Heather smiled a tiny bit. "When you put it like that, it sounds like something I'd say."

It was surprisingly easy, and I found myself wondering why. Plot convenience?

"You're surprised I admitted it so quickly." Heather stated flatly. "I know you are. And I guess I owe it to tell you why. It's because I'm sick of it. Ever since I dumped him, I've either felt angry or miserable. And I hate it. Maybe I don't deserve to be happy, but who cares? I should go after what I want. And the reason why I told you this stuff...well, you're the only one around here who I can trust with it. I don't even _like _most of the others. Not that I like you either, but at least you can keep a secret."

I gave a sigh. "So are you going to say it, or not? I can tell you're stalling. You don't have to be scared of it."

Heather scowled. "I'm not! I'm going to find him and do it right now. You go find someone else to talk to or something."

So I did. I talked to Scott for a while. We did the usual stuff. And when I was about to go home, Courtney stopped. "I'll give you a lift home." she offered. So I said goodbye to Scott there and got into Courtney's car.

"I thought I should tell you what happened." she smiled. "Heather's definitely not quite over everything, but what she said was that she was willing to maybe start over. I think Alejandro knew that when she said that, it meant he was on trial, and it's not going to be how it was for a while." She grinned. "But I think that means he's going to _have _to break his hobby with girls. And he has a habit of responding to girls when they flirt with him, which he's going to have to break, too."

"So how many girls actually start the flirting?" I asked.

Courtney shrugged. "Tons. He stands out. There aren't that many European people in Canada, and besides that, I won't deny that he's gorgeous."

"True." I agreed. "So you think things will get better from here?"

"I think they will. There's nowhere to go but up from here." Suddenly, she heaved a huge sigh. "For them, at least."

"What's up?" I asked.

Courtney stared straight ahead, her face stony. Finally, she spoke again. "I'm alone. Don't you realize – I've been on my own for a month and I keep _telling_ myself, I'm over Duncan. But if I am, why can I still not even talk to him? I haven't said a word to him since he asked Sammy out."

"You could try to be nice to him." I suggested. "Just ask him if you can just be friends."

Courtney sighed. "You don't understand, Brooklyn. I hated him when I first met him. We hooked up when I realized I loved him, but I still hated him then. I hate him _now_. We've never been friends."

"That's exactly why you should start now!" I said brightly. "Duncan's a reasonable guy, deep down – I think if you apologize, he'll want to start over. I know, you don't have anything to apologize for," I added when Courtney opened her mouth, "But just pretend to admit you were wrong. Say you're sorry for how things ended and that you'd like to start over as friends."

Finally, Courtney smiled wanly. "Thanks, Brooklyn. How are you so good at this stuff? You haven't dated anyone besides Scott, right?"

I shrugged. "I guess I just know you guys well. I'll see you next week on New Years', yeah?"

"Definitely." Courtney grinned, pulling up outside my house. "Happy Christmas for tomorrow and Friday."

"Happy Christmas." I echoed. "Bye."

And now that I had nothing much left to worry about, Christmas really was a happy time.

**I'm sorry for how short this chapter was. New Years' Eve will be next, and then, an epilogue!**


	42. Chapter 42: What Year Is This Again?

**Let's get this party started! Thanks for reviewing, Td4ever. I wouldn't have updated if not for you.**

**And yes, there are songs in here.**

For New Years' Eve, I told Mom and Dad I was staying with Sammy. We were going to go out during the night, then I'd sleep over at her house (hey, we were both sleeping over at the hideout, right?). We also managed to threaten/persuade Amy to remain silent about us not being at their house as her Christmas present to Sammy (she agreed due to the very expensive high heels and bangles Sammy gave her for Christmas).

On Sunday, Sammy called. "This is crazy. Guess what? Amy now says she wants to come with us on Thursday night and that she'll tell on us if she doesn't get to come. She apparently has nothing better to do on New Years'. Now what can we do? She won't be able to keep her mouth shut about the criminal thing."

"Bridgette was at the hideout, and she doesn't know about it." I reassured her. "Call Duncan, ask him if it's okay to bring Amy. If she's nice for the night and they keep things quiet, things could go fine. If Duncan says she can't come, call me back and we'll think of a plan to keep Amy quiet."

As it was, Amy was allowed to come with us, on the condition that what happened in the hideout stayed in the hideout. She was happy to oblige, since she didn't want anyone to know that she had to go out with her sister on New Years'. Oh, the horror if people found out that Amy hung out with the same people as Sammy by choice! How shallow was she?

But then the night arrived. While Duncan and the rest of the gang went to pick the twins up, Scott arrived for me. "So...did Gwen come?" I asked.

Scott nodded. "Like I said, she's not into parties, but she was over here from Monday anyway, so Duncan persuaded her to stick around for another couple of days before her college restarts."

"How's everything gone?" I asked. "Like, with Heather?"

Scott shrugged. "Dunno. Heather's stopped moping and snapping, and she'll talk to Alejandro and let him be affectionate with her, but she's not really responded properly. Not yet, anyway. But at least they're around each other again. I don't mind seeing Heather miserable once in a while, but it was getting old, and it was affecting everyone. Oh, and Courtney, believe it or not, has abandoned her blanking Duncan plan and has been trying to be friendly with him for the last week."

I smiled secretly as we zoomed by streets. Sounded like Courtney had followed my advice. "How has he responded?" I asked.

"For the first couple of days, he didn't seem sure what to think." Scott answered. "Then he thought Courtney might be planning to attack him after getting him into a false sense of security. Now he's decided it's real and is trying to be nice to her and not argue. He told her that he wasn't getting back with her, and she just shrugged and said she knew that and just wanted to try to be friends, without all the fighting."

I knew deep down that Courtney would probably clash with Duncan again. They were too different not to. But if they were friends, maybe things wouldn't be so bitter between them.

Most people were dressed up, at least a little bit. Courtney was in a slim purple gown, sort of like the outfit in the drawer but not as poofy and Disney-princessy. Heather had left her hair loose and was looking scarily gorgeous in blood red. Alejandro was actually in a tux, black. He clearly had eyes for no one but Heather, and they would've looked like the perfect couple, if not for Heather not properly looking at him.

Duncan hadn't bothered with dressing up at all, but Scott had at least left on the leather jacket he wore for the motorbike, and Gwen wasn't dressed differently to usual, but had clearly tried harder with her makeup and straightened her hair so that it reached to the base of her neck, rather than the top as it usually did.

The twins had dressed up a bit. Sammy was wearing a simple cocktail dress in sky blue with a modest neckline. Amy's dress was scarlet, longer, but it also showed off a ton of cleavage. Unfortunately for her, none of the guys were interested, although she was fluttering her eyelashes at Alejandro, clearly trying to get his attention with no luck.

Courtney had decided to use something other than alcohol to get things started. "I for one want to remember midnight, so I've got something for the girls to kill time in a way other than drinking." She showed it off with a flourish. "I rented a karaoke machine."

The twins both looked excited and Heather grinned. Gwen's face remained stony.

"Don't look like that, Gwen." Courtney said calmly. "I made sure there were some unknown songs we could do, just so you could join in."

Gwen shrugged. "Thanks, Courtney, but you know I can't sing. I'll just watch."

Courtney chuckled. "Sure. I'll have you sing something before midnight."

We all took turns, solo or duet. Heather began by performing her rendition of Taylor Swift's "I Knew You Were Trouble".

I noticed her looking over at Alejandro as she sang "_I knew you were trouble when you walked in, so shame on me now..."_

Courtney and I sang a song together - "That's What Girls Do" by No Secrets. Even Amy sang Tata Young's "Sexy, Naughty, Bitchy" – a perfect song for someone like her, although she was pretty quiet tonight, and hadn't said anything mean. She looked as if she was a little scared of some of the gang. Then Sammy went up and selected her ringtone - "Mean". She didn't say so, but it was clearly intended for Amy.

Sammy didn't look at Amy for most of the song, and only looked at her straight when she got to one line in particular. "_All you are is mean...and a liar...and pathetic...and alone in life, and mean, and mean, and mean, and mean..."_

"Come on, Gwen." Courtney coaxed. "Just one song."

"Drop it, Courtney." Gwen pleaded. "You know I can't sing. I don't want to embarrass myself."  
"If you're going to embarrass yourself, you should totally sing." Heather cut in. "That would be so much fun to see."

Amy suddenly smiled. "Actually, I think that's true. It's not fair if only _one _of us embarrasses herself." She looked directly at Sammy.

I glared at Amy. "You weren't listening, were you? Amy, you can get drunk and grumble on about how your sister can't sing...but all you are is mean."

Surprisingly, it was Courtney who spoke up. "And a liar. And pathetic. Sammy didn't embarrass herself at all. She was great."

As she spoke, she looked through the songs. "Here! Gwen, come on, you'll want to sing this one." She'd chosen a song called "Shalott", by someone called Emilie Autumn.

"Oh, give me a break, Courtney." sighed Gwen.

"You don't have to sing on your own." Courtney told her. "Anyone can pick up the tune. Look, if I sing the first couple of lines, you join in after that. Girls?" she looked at the rest of us. "You going to support us?"

We all nodded, even Amy. Even Heather, who hated Gwen!

Courtney grinned and the music started. She took one of the mics, and sang: "_She's locked up with a spinning wheel, she can't recall what it was like to feel_

_She says this room's gonna be my grave, and there's no one who can save me. _Gwen?"

Gwen hesitantly joined in, as Courtney sang the harmony. "_She sits down to her coloured thread, she knows lovers waking up in their bed, she says_

_How long can I live this way, is there no one I can pay to let me go?"_

Heather joined in. "_Cause I'm half sick of shadows, I wanna see the sky..."_

The three girls sang the chorus together, before I got up and read the words, trying to remember the tune to the verse. Courtney handed me one of the mics, and I sang.

"_She looks up to the mirrored glass, she sees a handsome horse and rider pass, she says_

_That man's gonna be my death, cause he's all I ever wanted in my life."_

Sammy took over, knowing the tune. "_I know he doesn't know my name, and that all the girls are all the same to him..."_

"_But still I've gotta get out of this place, cause I don't think I could face another night." _Amy cut in.

Sammy and I didn't stop, and I harmonized with the twins. "_When I'm half sick of shadows, and I can't see the sky..."_

We sang the chorus, then the three older girls joined in with the bridge, while we hesitantly sang it too. We took turns with the last verse, and I was last to sing a line on my own before the chorus.

"_Everyone else can watch as their dreams untie, so why can't I?"_

After all that, it was kind of a relief to finally start on the booze. The boys had been drinking it, and now we started, too, although Courtney made sure she didn't drink too many, because she wanted to remember the New Year.

When it got to the countdown, finally, no matter how much each of us had had, we all joined in. "Five...four...three...two...one...HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

Duncan sneaked up behind Sammy before turning her around and kissing her on the lips. Heather surprised everyone by lunging forward to initiate her kiss with Alejandro. And Scott picked me up and spun me around before setting me down and kissing me passionately, which made it all the more clear that the decision I'd made was right. I hugged all of the girls, even Amy, before returning to my boyfriend.

Duncan was whispering something to Sammy, which she was giggling at. "Amy, you know which room you're supposed to be sleeping in, right?" she called.

"Yes." Amy said in an irritated tone. "I'm supposed to be sharing with one of the others here. I remember."

Sammy smiled. "I'll see you guys later on, when it's light." she laughed as Duncan pulled her away, presumably to his own room.

"What say we retire to the bed too, sweetheart?" Scott whispered to me.

"There is something I wanted to do there." I whispered back. So we went away, just as I heard Courtney say "Heather, are you even going to _be _in your room tonight? What's wrong with letting Amy sleep in there?"

I assume Heather wasn't in her room, because Courtney won that argument, but that was when it got to really be the morning. But as Scott closed and locked the door to his room, I asked him the question.

"Do you have protection?"

Scott looked pretty surprised. "Yes, but..._what_? I thought you were still recovering from-"  
"Yes, and the best way to get over it is to replace it." I said impatiently. "Listen, Scott. I love you. Do you love me?"

Scott cupped my face. "Of course I love you, sweetheart. If you want, I'll even jump out of a plane with a bannner that reads _I love Brooklyn Celia Durfree. _How could you doubt it?"

"I don't." I said softly. "I just wanted to establish that. What Alejandro did nearly destroyed me. You and Courtney helped me pick up the pieces and they're back together now. But there's a puzzle piece missing – and that puzzle piece has red hair, blue eyes and freckles."

Scott grinned in spite of himself, but then frowned again. "But, sweetheart, you're not really asking-"

"I've thought about it and decided that now is the time." I said firmly. "If you love me and I love you, we should do it. I trust you, Scott. You make me feel safe. Please?" I dropped my voice to a whisper. "Please. I may not be a virgin any more, but I'd still consider you my first."

I don't want to tell you what happened. It was my moment, mine and Scott's, no one else's. This time, I was conscious enough to absorb every sensation, and I didn't get scared. It was true, I wouldn't have a problem with it any more. Even though it hurt a little, I had enough reassurance for things to be just right.

They say you should start the New Year as you mean to go on. I had to say, if I finished this year this way, it wouldn't be a problem.

**I hope you liked this chapter. There is an epilogue coming up! And then, the end! *Starting to cry***


	43. Epilogue: All Questions Answered

**Here it is...this is the end of the story! Thank you for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, Marth24 and Td4ever.**

It's been one and a half years since that New Year, and I've just graduated from high school. I'm turning eighteen next month.

I had decided long before New Years' that I couldn't join the gang full-time, but things have changed a bit. I still hang out with them a lot, but I don't join in any illegal action. It's like how Gwen is, except I'm around more.

I'm going to college in the fall, but only a local one. I don't really want to leave Toronto, and besides, I have most of my friends around.

Sammy worked hard in the last year of school and can go to college if she wants, but she decided to move in with the gang for now. It seems like her relationship with Duncan is on even keel, unlike it was with Courtney. She says that basically, as long as they don't try to tell each other what to do, things are all cool. It seems as if after that celebration when Courtney defended Sammy against Amy, they became friendly. Courtney later told me that she still thought Sammy was a bit shallow, but for some reason, once she got over the break-up, she stopped having much of a problem with her (at that point, she insisted that it was nothing to do with her being jealous at the time).

Jasmine's decided to take a gap year travelling around the world. She wants to explore, and so far, she's only done the outback. She's promised to keep in touch, but I'll just be glad if she arrives back in Canada healthy. If she comes back at all – she's applied for several international colleges for next year already.

I'm still dating Scott, although he's changed a bit from how he was when we met. I persuaded him to do some more wood carvings and sell them, and he finally did. They don't make much, but it means the gang's heists are slightly less frequent. He's still into making trouble and breaking rules, and sometimes watching uncomfortable scenes, but not so much. And no matter what's changed, the one thing that hasn't is the way he makes me feel. He was disappointed when I admitted that I wasn't going to join them full-time, but to compensate, I started sleeping over nearly every weekend once I turned seventeen. I did tell my parents after that age, because they'd started to relax a bit more on the rules and I made it clear that it was a shared house and I knew everyone in it. However, I didn't tell them that whenever I slept over, I shared Scott's bed, even when we didn't do anything (which had been once in the last eighteen months). I also didn't tell them that we'd already gone the whole way, and afterwards, I felt totally over what had happened. I counted that night as my true first time.

I'm on okay terms with the rest of the gang. Since I'm so close to Sammy, she tells me everything about the gang, and so I know that they're all okay with me, too.

Duncan still teases me sometimes, but he's pretty cool with me hanging around. I don't mind him teasing me – it's just something he does a lot. I usually just roll my eyes and laugh.

I'm still very good friends with Courtney. She's less involved with the gang than she was, and even got a job, but she's still living with them and goes on heists. She's sworn off guys for the moment, and seems happy single. She's completely over things now.

When Gwen's around, I'm still on good terms with her. She's about to start her third year at art college, and gave me some advice on how to make friends and keep up with my classes when I start.

Heather's her usual ice queen self. She's not nice to me, but she's not mean, either. She's just...Heather. I've gotten used to her. She's still with Alejandro, for now. He's kept to his word about not flirting with other girls. And speaking of which...

It still took me about a month after New Years' before I could completely forgive Alejandro. But knowing he genuinely regretted it and wouldn't do something like that again made it easier. I soon understood what Courtney meant when she said she could talk to him about anything, and he'd listen and know what reaction was wanted. Once, when I was having a total meltdown over end-of-semester exams, it was Alejandro who let me vent and then helped me to calm down, pointing out reasons why I was overreacting completely – I'd done the study, I knew the material...there was no reason why I should freak out. It wasn't that no one else was supportive or anything, but no one else could have made me see that so easily. Even if they had made the same points, there was just something in the way Alejandro reasoned things that made it sound more convincing. It was the first time he'd used his persuasiveness for a selfless reason around me, and after that...well, I wasn't scared of him any more. A few times after that, if I had a problem that I was sure no one else would understand, I'd go to him, and he never seemed to mind.

"I took Psychology at high school," he explained to me when I asked, "And my father was a diplomat. I've been honing the skill of saying what people want to hear since childhood. And despite my flaws...I _can _be a good person if I try."

So that's where I am now with the gang. To think, now I'm nearly eighteen, but nearly three years ago, I was the same shy scared sheltered fifteen-year-old girl that was locked up in the warehouse and held for ransom. Now, there's no way I would be scared of any of them.

So that's me. Brooklyn Celia Durfree, seventeen years and eleven months old, girlfriend of Scott, friend of a criminal gang. Sure, it may not seem like something conventional, but who cares? I'm happy – what else matters?

**The End**

**I hope you enjoyed Brooklyn's story. I've been working on this for so long, that it's kind of sad that I'm finished. So, what did you think of the story as a whole? Please, leave one more review!**


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